Guillermo del Toro had a surprise for moviegoers this past weekend when they went to go see War for the Planet of the Apes, one so tantalizing and interesting it was hard not to buy a ticket and run to see it again.
He’d attached the trailer for his new film, The Shape of Water, to those prints, and let them run theatrically for a whole five days before putting it online. And now, it’s finally here. Cue that Ron Paul gif that everybody loves, and settle in to watch the Merman love story you didn’t know you needed until right now.
Grab the tissues, too.
Holy shit.
Well, it looks like we have a new contender for “movie we’re most excited for this year that isn’t set in a Galaxy far, far away.” There’s an aching lyricism in this trailer that’s intoxicating and inviting, and God bless del Toro for casting Sally Hawkins as his protagonist. She’s so beautifully expressive that she can sell anything to you. Add a fantastic supporting cast, including Octavia Spencer and an evil-as-fuck Michael Shannon, and creature work done by the brilliant Doug Jones, and you have something that’s got our attention and our curiosity right before you show us the utterly gorgeous trailer. Seriously, this is our guy firing on all cylinders, and thank god we don’t have to wait too long for it.
Here’s a synopsis:
From master storyteller, Guillermo del Toro, comes ‘The Shape of Water’ — an otherworldly fairy tale, set against the backdrop of Cold War era America circa 1963. In the hidden high-security government laboratory where she works, lonely Elisa (Sally Hawkins) is trapped in a life of silence and isolation. Elisa’s life is changed forever when she and co-worker Zelda (Octavia Spencer) discover a secret classified experiment. Rounding out the cast are Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Michael Stuhlbarg and Doug Jones.
The only bad news: The Shape of Water doesn’t hits theaters until December 8.
Featured photo via Universal Pictures.