‘Crimson Peak’: Obvious supernatural shocks, scares

MIA WASIKOWSKA plays a befuddled and tormented aspiring author.

Directed and cowritten by Guillermo del Toro, the horror flick “Crimson Peak” is far from subtle, but it’s surprisingly subdued for the filmmaker known for his visually flashy works.

Starring Mia Wasikowska as the befuddled aspiring writer Edith, and Jessica Chastain and Tom Hiddleston as suspicious siblings Lucille and Thomas Sharpe, the film is half-riveting, half-perplexing—although one can’t help admiring the well-composed imagery throughout the movie, set in late 1800s America and England.

The supernatural and psychological terrors of “Crimson Peak” are obvious but still stunning, and it is to Wasikowska’s credit that her unceasingly tormented character’s transformations are felt and mystifying.

Hiddleston, best known for portraying the trickster god Loki in three Marvel movies, does sufficiently as the English machine designer who charms Edith off her feet, but his character is nowhere near as interesting as Lucille, with whom he shares a creepy bond.

Chastain gives that character a rich, Eva Green-like vibe, tortured and threatening at once, while managing to stay enigmatic.

While there aren’t many enigmas to unravel, Del Toro makes up for it in shocks and scares, which can be seen coming from miles away—and even when the digitally rendered spooks aren’t always very convincing or disturbing.