Crimson Peak- Imagery

The Crimson Peak website seems like a good place to start.

I'm not going to talk too much about the movie, because I don't want to spoil it. However, there are actually a fair few spoilers in this post, because it's almost impossible to analyse the images in relation to the film without mentioning a fair few important details.
The film is beautiful, as most del Toro works are, and is a great Gothic story. It's full of fantastical imagery, from bleeding snow, to beautiful gothic staircases, to fascinating symbolisms.

Source: http://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/610932-new-crimson-peak-character-and-kick-ass-mondo-posters

This is the image which fronts the Crimson Peak art book (which I totally have, I should add), and it's a pretty awesome image. 

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimson_Peak#/media/File:Crimson_Peak_theatrical_poster.jpg

red is laying on bed, blue is crimson peak- overlaying to two key elements- bed where she is awoken by ghosts, and expected to die, house is the setting, and the issue. (The film theorists drama by frame colour of fear)- homage to mario b?- master of macabre- contrasting hues- red/blue, green/magenta- red violence, passion- narrative device- spn event-sets- flex for style, etc- period pieces- dark past overshadowing modern day- dt channeled these- black manor, white snow- custom set- under complete control- 

Source: http://theyoungfolks.com/film/sdcc-2015-crimson-peak-krampus-warcraft/59768

The image which is exposed in red over the characters image corresponds symbolically to the sort of character they are. 

Edith and the butterfly, and Lucille and the moth- Butterflies and moths are a recurring theme, and when in the house especially, with moths taking centre stage as the story gets darker. Moths and butterflies are literally polar opposites when it comes to symbolism, and is an indication that these two women are the same. Due to the nature of the creatures, they're regarded as though they are sisters; butterflies are the 'good', while moths are the 'bad'. the greek word for butterfly is psyche, the same as soul. It was common belief among most ancient, and most less ancient too, cultures that the butterfly was the form the human soul took between lifetimes. They are also associated with rebirth and metamorphosis, death and resurrection. The moth on the other hand has much darker connotations, partly due to being its nocturnal counterpart. Its archetypal image is of it being drawn to a flame; a harsh image due to the fact that it is pursuing something which will ultimately kill it. It is the submission of the ego as death begins to posses the soul- it represents the disembodied soul, but it is a destructive force, rather than the butterflies life giving one. 

Edith is our stories protagonist, and she is the butterfly- she is beautiful, and must undergo a range of changes throughout our story, including ones which dabble in literal life and death metamorphosis'. Lucille is her equal, but her opposite. She is in a literal sense a disembodied soul, being part of and surrounded by the chaos and destruction of the film. Marking them out in this way is actually a beautiful way of introducing the close link between them. 

Thomas- skull link with death. he is deadly to edith- pose puts this at odds with him- he seems unsure

Micheal- Angel wings- he is op. to thomas- he is there to help edith, and save her- pose is strong and assertive- unlike his counterpart he knows what he wants, and what to do. 

Source: https://www.facebook.com/CrimsonPeakUK/photos/pb.798590670169889.-2207520000.1445809693./1176443125717973/?type=3&theater

This is quite a pivotal scene in terms of marking out our characters. In a park, there are butterflies dying under a tree, which upsets Edith. Lucille tells her that where she is from (Cumbria...) there are no butterflies, simply creatures of darkness- moths. 

Source:https://www.facebook.com/CrimsonPeakUK/photos/pb.798590670169889.-2207520000.1445809693./1180198172009135/?type=3&theater

This is a pretty heavily publicised still from the film- simple compared to others- background and person both pale-become part of one0another- symbolism of white. 

Source: http://collider.com/crimson-peak-pictures-show-off-the-stunning-allerdale-hall/

The house was made for the film in a sound set, because an important part of the Gothic genre is the house in which the story is set. The house is both stunning and repulsive. Its amazingly beautiful to look at, which its grand staircases and delicate woodwork, but there are holes in the ceiling and walls, and red clay oozing through the walls. It is creaky, sinking into the clay and infested with dying creatures, namely moths. The colour scheme is dark, and light is scarce. It's a house you'd want to reach out and touch, to experience for yourself, and yet it is one you'd seek to avoid. It is not inviting, it is imposing. The high angle in which we see it is there to demonstrate its grand nature. it seeks to offer itself to us, to show us is beauty, as well as it's secrets, but also to demonstrate it's power. 
Something is amiss in Allerdale Hall. 

Source: http://horrorbuzz.com/crimson-peak-halloween-horror-nights/

This isn't from the film itself, but from what I gather it is a sort of replica, for a horror maze based on the film- Crimson Peak Maze of Madness. The image is accurate to the sights we see in the film. I wanted the image for the wallpaper. The wallpaper is- I'm sure you guessed it- moths. Another reminder of the dark, destructive forces in the house, be they human, or otherwise. The corridors have a strange effect- they are long, with sharp arches and lit with a peculiar blue light. It adds to the paranormal edge, especially when the events of the film which take place are considered. 

Les Vampires

Source:http://38.media.tumblr.com/94886f6bc27e8798df367a72ea414ead/tumblr_nk1ily33FG1rsxqqio1_500.gif

I came across this gif of  a scene from Les Vampires of  Marfa Koutiloff dancing as a vampire bat in "The Ring That Kills" which is episode Two of the serial. The imagery in this looks fantastic, and something about this scene in particular is really captivating to me. It's framed so well, with the central focus being the bat like figure, but her movement leading us to the woman who's asleep in white (and that contrast is pretty strong). The background is pleasantly simple, which it really needs to be, as to not take away from the foreground, and has a gothic style to it, which is a great support to the vampiric atmosphere. 

I think I need to watch all seven hours (there are ten episodes of this).