Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

The Shape of Water 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 8, 2024

Guillermo Del Toro's "The Shape of Water" (2017) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the release include new program with Guillermo Del Toro and David Lowery; interview with artist James Jean; filmed masterclass; promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Some years ago, Roger Ebert said that inside Alistair MacLean’s head there was a wonderful world. Ebert made the statement as a joke, but he was right. In his novels, MacLean invented mesmerizing exotic playgrounds and introduced great characters who did extraordinary, often unbelievable things. Because millions enjoyed visiting this wonderful world, ambitious film producers began recreating bits of it in different genre films. Several of them, like The Satan Bug, Fear is the Key, and Breakheart Pass turned out very well and are still revisited today. However, a few, like Caravan to Vaccares, were big misfires. It is not difficult to tell why the bad films turned out as they did. They tackled a lot of material that is impossible to transfer well to the big screen, primarily because MacLean routinely moved very fast to create exciting but typically illogical action-oriented mayhem. For this reason, even their good counterparts have mediocre areas where they visibly struggle with material that can be effective only on paper.

Guillermo Del Toro’s The Shape of Water looks and behaves like one of those big misfires MacLean’s novels inspired. Obviously, The Shape of Water has a contemporary appearance that instantly moves it far away from any of the genre films MacLean’s novels inspired. However, this contemporary appearance is only a wrapper that holds The Shape of Water together, and the material underneath it, which Del Toro scripted, reveals very similar qualities.

It is broken into three acts. In the first act, Del Toro reveals a top-secret facility where the U.S. government has gathered many smart people to work on projects that can keep it a few steps ahead of its greatest nemesis, the U.S.S.R. government. Del Toro then introduces the mute janitor Elisa (Sally Hawkins), who sweeps the floor and empties trash bags throughout the facility without disturbing the smart people. Elisa is a social outcast, too, so her entire existence is one repetitive, utterly boring cycle of performing like a robot inside the facility and being ignored like one outside of it. In the second act, Elisa establishes contact with a strange amphibious creature (Doug Jones) in one of the halls she is tasked to clean and, after witnessing how it is made to suffer by the main man there, Richard Strickland (Michael Shannon), decides to free it. In the third act, Elisa, her friendly neighbor (Richard Jenkins), and a communist mole (Michael Stuhlbarg) organize a risky operation to free the amphibious creature. As the group goes to work, aiming for success but fearing failure, Elisa and the amphibious creature fall madly in love.

Del Toro is a director with a rich imagination that is undoubtedly a portal to a wonderful world like the one Ebert said existed in MacLean’s head. However, Del Toro’s wonderful world is further detached from reality and instead of action prioritizes atmosphere, typically of the kind that the baroque writers promoted in their work. It is why even Del Toro’s most mainstream films take their atmosphere very, very seriously -- it is an essential element of their identity.

The Shape of Water comes from the same place where Del Toro’s mind rules with unprecedented freedom, but it rearranges several crucial aspects of his work that make it effective. For example, instead of an elaborate original project, it is an elaborate copycat project, borrowing, expanding, and improving ideas and characters from other films. Its star, Elisa, is modeled after Amelie, while the amphibious creature is a relative of the famous Gill Man from Jack Arnold's classic film and the Amphibian Man from Gennadi Kazanski and Vladimir Chebotarev’s lesser known classic film. Their story is a variation of the original story from the latter, too. As if to legitimize the Soviet connection, Del Toro even frames the communist mole as a good and compassionate guy and his boss as a despicable, morally corrupt American patriot.

This mish-mash of familiar ideas and characters is ineffective. Unsurprisingly, The Shape of Water looks very cliched and as disappointingly artificial as the big-budget projects Hollywood regularly greenlights nowadays. Del Toro’s touch is barely recognizable, and only in the opening twenty or so minutes, before it becomes obvious that the bad messaging that floods the narrative is entirely intentional.

The Shape of Water 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Criterion's release of The Shape of Water is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray disc is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray disc is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures that appear with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc, including the actual color values of this content.

Screencaptures #1-19 are from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #23-34 are from the 4K Blu-ray.

I viewed the entire film in native 4K and only quickly sampled the 1080p presentation. On my system, the 4K visuals were quite incredible. Delineation, clarity, depth, and fluidity were of what I consider to be 'reference quality'. All colors had that very rich, very vibrant appearance that I expected given the nature of the production and how recent it is. The HDR10 grade handles darker areas very well, though it has to be said that identifying inconsistencies or minor issues would be extremely difficult given the heavy color stylization and how light and darkness are utilized to give the film its period identity. Image stability is outstanding.

The 1080p presentation is equally impressive. Select darker areas can create the impression that there is slightly more to see, but I think that their dynamic range is either identical or slightly better in native 4K. Again, there is so much stylization in the film that any minor discrepancies between the 1080p and 4K presentations become very easy to disregard. One last thing. Even if you have a very large screen, in the 85" inch and up range, I think that you will be equally pleased with both presentations.

The Shape of Water 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. A Descriptive audio track is included as well. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided.

The sound design is very diverse, emphasizing numerous unique surround effects and dynamic contrasts, and the 5.1 track replicates these qualities brilliantly. The dialog is crystal clear, always very sharp, and easy to follow. While I did not see the film in the theater, there is no doubt in my mind that the 5.1 track is an outstanding replica of the original theatrical audio mix.

The Shape of Water 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Bonus Features - there are no bonus features on the disc.

BLU-RAY DISC

• Guillermo Del Toro and David Lowery - in this new program, Guillermo Del Toro and David Lowery discuss the classic roots of The Shape of Water, its characters, and some key themes that define it. In English, not subtitled (26 min).

• A Fairy Tale for Troubled Times - this four-part documentary examines the production of The Shape of Water. It features interviews with cast and crew members, as well as raw footage from the shooting of the film. In English, with English subtitles. (29 min).

• Anatomy of a Scene: Prologue - in this program, Guillermo Del Toro discusses the prologue of The Shape of Water and explains what he wanted it to convey to the viewer. In English, with English subtitles. (4 min).

• Anatomy of a Scene: The Dance - in this program, Guillermo Del Toro discusses Elisa's relationship with the creature and the dance sequence. In English, with English subtitles. (5 min).

• Shaping the Waves: A Conversation with James Jean - in this program, artist James Jean discusses the drawings he did for Guillermo Del Toro and The Shape of Water. In English, with English subtitles. (6 min).

• Masterclass: The Shape of Water - in this program, Guillermo Del Toro discusses the conception and production of The Shape of Water with an audience of young production designers, makeup artists, directors, etc. In English, with English subtitles. (14 min).

• Trailer - presented here are a couple of original trailers for The Shape of Water. n English, with English subtitles. (7 min).

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring Carlos Aguilar's essay "A Touch of the Unknown" and technical credits.

The Shape of Water 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is difficult to see The Shape of Water as anything else but one big vanity project that fails to match the quality of its creator's previous work. But the bigger problem is that it is not a good film. It pretends to be several things and ends up being an entirely predictable politically correct messenger with a glitzy artificial personality. During the last couple of decades, and especially since the superheroes conquered the box office, Hollywood has produced hundreds of such bad films. Criterion's combo pack offers outstanding 4K and 1080p presentations of The Shape of Water, so if your take on the film is drastically different, grab a copy of it for your collection.