Severely underrated on this website, cronos is an engaging tale that captivates the viewer for the entirety of its duration. Cronos defies so many attempts at categorization that describing it is a challenge even for the pudgy, blueeyed mr. Having just surfaced from the shape of water, guillermo del toro has undoubtedly proven himself as both a magician and a monster of horror. Mexican writerdirector guillermo del toro turns a familiar horror story inside out to create a fresh and humorous tale straight from the. Cronos is guillermo del toros debut feature film and in his very first endeavour, del toro shows the one element that shall separate him from the rest in future. Guillermo del toro made an auspicious and audacious feature debut with cronos, a highly unorthodox tale about the seductiveness of the idea.
Cronos mexico, 1993, r, with subtitles, the feature debut of mexican filmmaker guillermo del toro, is an alchemic twist on vampire lore and the costs of eternal life. Critics week section of the 1993 cannes film festival. And yet for all of its flaws, cronos is remarkably mature given del toro s age when he made it. Brussels international festival of fantasy film bifff 1994 winner silver raven. Immortality is presented to jesus gris frederico luppi through the cronos device. Cronos was the winner of the grand prix in the intl. Del toros directorial debut is cronos 1993, a mexican horror film.
Initially i knew del toro, the mexicanborn filmmaker, only through his first american films, mimic, blade ii and hellboy. Guillermo del toro made an auspicious and audacious feature debut with cronos, a highly unorthodox tale about the seductiveness of the idea of immortality. Del toro made his feature debut in 1993 with the spanishenglish film cronos. This device created by a 16th century alchemist promises eternal life albeit at.
He is best known for the academy awardwinning fantasy films pans labyrinth 2006 and the shape of water 2017, winning the oscars for best director and best picture for the latter and his upcoming stopmotion film pinocchio. It turns out i loved guillermo del toro before i hated him. With federico luppi, ron perlman, claudio brook, margarita isabel. A love which will be severely tested later down the road. Cronos is wonderfully gothic, even though it is low budget when compared to del toros later work. The simple, straightforward plot of director guillermo del toros cronos is given resonance by a rich, intriguing mythology which emphasizes the grotesque, parasitic aspects of vampirism, stripping away the romantic aspects of the myth to define the vampire as essentially a highlyevolved form of parasitic insect, which the cronos device itself clearly resembles. Cronos is a 1993 mexican independent horror drama film written and directed by guillermo del toro, starring veteran argentinean actor federico luppi and american actor ron perlman. Cronos producer looks back on guillermo del toros early. They were never recovered, so the cronos devices that guillermo del toro owns are replicas. The tentacles of his imagination have extended into dark places, giving us everything from mutant cockroaches to a steampunk army of golden elves, but it was his first film venture that might also be one of his most exquisitely terrifying.
The following is the complete filmography of guillermo del toro, a mexican film director, screenwriter, producer, and novelist. The film was selected as the mexican entry for the best foreign language film at the 66th. Guillermo del toros cronos may take a while to catch up at the box office with fellow mexican director alfonso araus hit like water for chocolate. This is the stuff of classic horror films, and cronos, written and directed by a 29yearold mexican named guillermo del toro, combines it with a colorful latin magic realism. While his spin was joyfully dark and mysterious it was balanced with the grandfathers love and devotion directed towards his granddaughter. Since then he has directed and produced numerous films in both the united states and mexico. All of the original cronos devices created for this film were stolen when production was completed. This surreal variant on the classic vampire tale is the directorial debut of mexican filmmaker guillermo del toro, who garnered international acclaim and several awards. Big thing, only his performance is weak and his moments are where cronos feels a tad cheap.
Cronos is a horror movie by guillermo del toro with a gruesome, violent, weird and bizarre story. The film s got a low budget and del toros inventive with compensating for it, often successfully, but the cartoon villains are a. The obsession of a dying man for the cronos leaves a path of violence trying to. Cronos is wonderfully gothic, even though it is low budget when compared to del toro s later work. How guillermo del toros cronos blurs the line between man. And yet for all of its flaws, cronos is remarkably mature given del toros age when he made it. Director guillermo del toro talks about the genesis of his beautiful daughter pans labyrinth, how a visit from a faun prompted his love affair. But the dark fable was a labour of love for director guillermo del toro, who says that violence in his native mexico is.
The film has a lot of sympathy with an old man who behaves like a drug addict, and it shows that. The foundation for this is del toros 1993 debut feature, cronos. Guillermo del toros 1st feature film was extremely clever in its unique delivery of a vampires tale. The film has a lot of sympathy with an old man who behaves like. Guillermo del toros first feature film cronos places a new spin on the familiar vampire genre. Even if you already own one or more of the previouslyreleased editions of the three films included cronosthe devils backbonepans labyrinth, this bluray set is still well worth buying thanks to the perks of this gorgeous new release, including a hardcover. Mexicanborn filmmaker guillermo del toro has created a distinctive cinematic style mixing the world of monster movies, comic books, and exuberant visuals straight from his imagination. An arresting, beautiful reimagining of the vampire legend, the film brought a latin flair for magic realism to the table while outlining thematic interests that would blossom into careerlong obsessions. From a mexican grave comes cronos the new york times. Cronos guillermo del toro1993 pelicula completa youtube.
Made on a shoestring budget, cronos is enormously impressive in style and substance, though there are some problematic scenes and occasional pacing problems it deserves a big budget remake. The lead character becomes a vampire after accidentally triggering an ancient device. For sheer imaginative brio, pans labyrinth is one of the films of the year. Federico luppi in cronos 1993 ron perlman in cronos 1993 federico. The film touches on what it means to be human and on mans quest for eternal life. Rappresenta il primo di una serie di film a cui toro, luppi e perlman hanno collaborato. Cronos is a fine picture from del toro, and he makes a terrific feature that continues the tradition of terrifying, memorable vampire films. Directed by guillermo del toro 1993 mexico guillermo del toro made an auspicious and audacious feature debut with cronos, a highly unorthodox tale about the seductiveness of the idea of immortality. The film tells the story of elderly antique dealer jesus gris federico luppi, in a. Guillermo del toro s feature film directorial debut is a quietly impressive horror that attempted, and largely succeeded, in providing more emotional weight to a the tired vampire horror subgenre. Of course, that was before i fell in love with him again.
He studied under oscarwinning special effects artist dick smith and made his first feature film, cronos, in 1993. Guillermo del toros feature film directorial debut is a quietly impressive horror that attempted, and largely succeeded, in providing more emotional weight to a the tired vampire horror subgenre. Probably because del toro plays them for laughs a lot. Cronos is del toro s first feature film, and the first of several films on which he collaborated with either luppi or perlman. Guillermo del toro director, screenwriter, producer. The spanish films of guillermo del toro countercurrents. Guillermo del toros first ever film is a thoughtful, heartwrenching story which above all manages to be fresh, intriguing and unique while managing to captivate the feel of horror films in the same mould as the shining, whereby it is a film about family first, and a. Guillermo del toro on pans labyrinth film the guardian. Cronos is a 1993 mexican independent horror drama film written and directed by guillermo del toro, starring veteran argentinean actor federico luppi and. Its also the first expression of the budding genre masters affinity for cinema fantasy and horror as a crucible for exploring humanity. Guillermo del toros unique feature debut is not only gory and stylish, but also. Guillermo del toro s 1st feature film was extremely clever in its unique delivery of a vampires tale.
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