Satisfyingly damp, creaky and gothic, Del Toro's mature fairy tale is a fantastical story that sparkles with authenticity.

I didn't love it (my own fault for not being in the right mood) but I am in admiration of the storytelling. Its theatrical structure and smoothe transitions keep the film feeling like a story book and effortlessly transporting.

That would have been a great point to end this review but I can't leave without commenting on how infuriating her eating the grapes was. Why?! I also do think that the fantasy being in her head and not real would have been the cherry on top but GDT didn't want to go that way and I get that.

I'm going to need to rewatch this with better concentration next time because I think I'll get a lot more out of it if I'm fully engrossed.