Guillermo Del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities

Pop Culture
Guillermo Del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities
By Patrick Oliver
October 28, 2022 - 12:14

Studios: Netflix
Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, Sebastian Roché, Demetrius Grosse, Elpidia Carrillo, David Hewlett, Julian Richings, Nabeel El Khafif, F. Murray Abraham, Glynn Turman, Luke Roberts, Kate Micucci, Martin Starr, Dan Stevens, Ben Barnes, Crispin Glover, Oriana Leman, Peter Weller, Eric André, Sofia Boutella, Charlyne Yi, Steve Agee, Michael Therriault, Saad Siddiqui, Essie Davis, Andrew Lincoln, Hannah Galway
Directed by: Guillermo Navarro, Vincenzo Natali, David Prior, Ana Lily Amirpour, Keith Thomas, Catherine Hardwicke, Panos Cosmatos, Jennifer Kent
Produced by: Guillermo del Toro, J. Miles Dale, Gary Ungar, Jeff J.J. Authors
Running Time: 38–64 minutes
Release Date: October 25th 2022
Rating: 18 and over
Distributors: Exile Entertainment, Double Dare You
Genre: Short films
Platform: streaming

This anthology series is Curated by Guillermo Del Toro, inspired by a book he has written. He also co-wrotes some of the screenplays. If you know Del Toro, you'll know that he does horror and the macabre and social commentary well. In fact, he introduces each episode himself. And he has a host of good directors at the helm too. The Directors of 'The Babadook', 'Cube', 'Mandy', and the 'The Vigil', to name but a few.

I've watched two of the eight episodes in this series thus far and I can tell you that I am impressed. There is a feeling of being pulled in and immersed in the narrative unfolding on screen and experiencing dread and chills and sympathy for the characters. Even when they might not be the most sympathetic of people!

In the first story, 'Lot. 36', we see a thoroughly unpleasant character buy a recently unowned storage container and the mounting sense of unease continues to the last frame as he forges ahead blinded by his serious obligations and his own failings.

In the second, 'Graveyard Rats', we accompany the protagonist on a journey fuelled by desperation, greed and hubris in a Gothic tale set in and around a graveyard in Salem, Massachusetts.

Being a horror anthology, this may feel faintly reminiscent of 'Creepshow', 'Tales of the Unexpected', or 'The Twilight Zone', and if so, it's in very good company. Guillermo Del Toro's 'Cabinet of Curiosities' is definitely worth a watch for any horror fans out there.

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