Fantasy has enjoyed an upswing in the last two decades. Twenty years ago the term conjured for the public imagination images of Disney films, kitschy studio oddities like
Willow and
Labyrinth, and low rent embarrassments like the
Dungeons and Dragons movie. Today fantasy films are often pitched as major awards contenders. They litter the summer and fall release slots. “Nerd culture” has not just been accepted by pop culture. It has become pop culture.
Guillermo Del Toro, the writer and director of
Crimson Peak, is as responsible for the present climate as anyone. His early films
Cronos ...
