He’ll never be as tragic as Burton
Or will he
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I mean we’ve had the auteurism vs collective responsibility debate many times, but in the context of cinema I think auteurism is still a valid critical mode due to the fact that directors are still artistic prime movers in all but the most cynical of board room productions. Del Toro movies and their consistent peccadilloes are obviously “his” in a way that places the burden of proof on people disagreeing with that notion.
I’m glad you applied that frame to a certain kind of indie game. It’s a feeling I’ve had but never before had a name for.
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like i’ve no doubt that his movies are his own but think that if you’re gonna talk about how personal taste informs not just someone’s own work but also movements in the format as a whole then it’s worth talking more about just how that happens - it’s hard for me to imagine that any of the broader things the essay talks about (acceptably personalised yet bankable versions of genre and/or world cinema, assimilation of private obsessions into a marketable talisman of authenticity) either depend upon or would noticeably be impacted by del toro’s specific body of work. you could talk about 80s superhero comics (with their creator-driven takes on corporate genre icons) or the magical realist movement in novels (quickly shifting from “experimental” to new yorker-approved international house style) for pretty similar examples i think. i don’t want to stan for a millionaire director and you can be disappointed in the guy for playing to the crowd but positioning him as “spearheading” gentrification or as a “faith healer” manipulating some fundamentally passive audience seems to me softpedalling the underlying factors this stuff in a kind of dubious way, for a movie review. but i’d maybe read it differently if i hadn’t checked it out expecting a sharper take.
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Reading charitably, I think he meant to refer to the underlying swelling movement in order to clarify his feelings about this specific movie, given that the piece is styled as a review and not as a larger essay. Or alternatively, this movie is what finally made the idea click and give form to previous formless thoughts, so he takes the opportunity to mention the larger trend as background. Maybe because this movie happens to be his personal click he gives del Toro more primacy than is warranted. But yeah. It’s very actionbutton honestly. It’s a kind of criticism I have a soft spot for.
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I can’t say I’m a fan of the tone of this piece. I’m not a Del Toro stan and think his films over rely on the strengths of his production and “creature” design rather than directorial skill or his scripts. But nonetheless I’m glad he can make a film about a woman fucking a fish monster and it becoming a serious awards contender. I’m glad that he can still make his passion projects. I’ll admit that he is also a charming and enthusiastic presence in interviews that warm me over, someone I’d like to have dinner with.
I do think Adam Nayman is a very talented film writer though. This piece that was just published today is probably the best written on The Master: https://www.theringer.com/movies/2017/12/29/16828404/paul-thomas-anderson-the-master-phantom-thread
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True of gothic as a literary genre, although gothic prior to its romantic revival was a thing with certain codified, deep-structured traits and authenticity. But yeah I don’t think even that matters if you’re aiming to do anything that isn’t a period-accurate architectural project, and I don’t know why anyone else would care
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i’d like to refer to the fishman’s underlying swelling movement in order to clarify my feelings about his ass 
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Nick Pinkerton now joining in on the Del Toro bashing:
"Lovecraft, whose fiction was flavored by quack-scientific racialism and who died in penury with a bellyful of potted meat, is a crucial artist, and dear, sweet, perfectly progressive Guillermo del Toro, who has repeatedly announced his intention to film Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness and will expire well-fed, filthy rich, and surrounded by memorabilia, is no kind of an artist at all. "
If you haven’t read his 4-part series on Twin Peaks, then go ahead and do that if you please.
Heavens a well-regarded auteur being kinda a middle-brow hack buoyed by production design rather than a powerful artiste?
We should probably kill him.
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As far as middle brow directors I’d rather watch del toro than spielberg
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This middle aged dude probably won’t even die right!!!
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I mean, who wouldn’t rather see Lynch’s “At the Mountains of Madness” than del Toro’s.