Guillermo del Toro is one of those filmmakers where it’s almost impossible to not be enthralled by them, in part for the sheer quality of their movies, but also for the unadulterated love they possess for all forms of cinema. From his early horror work with Mimic into his truly prestigious projects – the filmmaker has continued to marvel us with his creativity.
With a filmography spanning 12 feature films, Guillermo has incredible range, while also never losing his signature gothic, fairy tale-like style. From aquatic romance in The Shape of Water to the pulpiest of action-horror in Blade II, the auteur has left an indelible mark on modern cinema. Here are all of his 12 films, ranked.
12. and 11. Cronos (1992) and The Devil’s Backbone (2001)
As with quite a few directors, there’s always a film or two from the start of their career that’s somewhere in the ether, but alas, unobtainable. Try as I might, I think the only way to watch these movies is to re-download LimeWire – not a prospect I relish. The trailers can be found here and here, with both of them looking, to be fair, delightfully unhinged.
10. Blade II (2002)
Blade II presents something of a conundrum. The action is gloriously bloody and arcade-inspired, and there’s a wonderful atmosphere that blends a lot of Guillermo’s classic gothic style with the new-age techno vibe that the bloodsuckers of this world seem to thrive in. The story and the character development however? They’re really not great. Blade teams up with some nasty vampires to fight some evolved, nasty (and slightly feral) vampires, only for everyone to die apart from our protagonist. Meanwhile the major character moment for our beloved Daywalker is when he drinks blood late in the film… the same outcome from the first movie. It leads to some good action, but there’s little in the way of originality.
9. Mimic (1997)
Mimic is a classic creature-feature, and while it’s not the revolutionary work we have come to expect from later Guillermo, it still holds up as incredibly enjoyable for a low-budget horror. This is a tried and tested plot of human ingenuity gone wrong, as bugs that have been genetically engineered to halt an epidemic evolve past their constraints and threaten New York City. There’s an ominous tension throughout that builds up well as the film descends deeper into New York. If you’re scared of bugs, I’d recommend giving this one a pass.
8. Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
While nowhere near as compelling as the first of the series, Hellboy II: The Golden Army is still much better than plenty of recent superhero movies. Ron Perlman returns as the eponymous hero, pitted against an Elvish prince hellbent on awakening the mythical Golden Army (giant robots that pretty much spell doom for everyone). Much more so than the first film, Hellboy II really immerses you in a world of fantasy with a who’s who of weird and wonderful creatures throughout. Much like the first, it plants seeds for what could have been expanded in a third and final film, and to this day, it remains such a travesty that the director never got to finish what he started.
7. Hellboy (2004)
Continuing his collaboration with the always excellent Ron Perlman, the director’s first Hellboy film is frankly a fucking delight. It sees our big, red, horned protagonist fight against Grigori Rasputin, played by Karel Roden, before the latter can unleash some big demons currently imprisoned in space. Throw in some Jeffrey Tambor comedy, John Hurt’s fatherly figure, and Doug Jones playing a fish-man for the first of many times in a Guillermo del Toro movie, and you’ve got a winner. But seriously, Hellboy checks every box – it’s funny, the action is great, and it lays the groundwork for what could have been an excellent trilogy. Alas, it wasn’t to be.
6. Pacific Rim (2013)
It honestly can’t be overstated how impressive it is that this unhinged monster movie still feels like a quintessentially Guillermo film. There’s a deep commitment to world-building, action sequences pulled straight out of a manga, along with the wonderfully graphic gore that we’re accustomed to. In essence, giant creatures known as Kaiju are coming through a rift in the Pacific Ocean, and giant, piloted robots known as Jaegers are tasked with stopping them and closing the rift. All sounds a bit silly, right? Yet somehow, Pacific Rim still holds up for both children and adults as a well-rounded, inclusive film. All the over-the-top action mixed with a surprisingly human tale about how loss affects us, this is one of the finest blockbusters in modern times.
5. The Shape of Water (2017)
Guillermo del Toro won Best Director for his work on The Shape of Water, a film which also claimed Best Picture, and while it isn’t the very best of his work, it is undoubtedly a wonderful film. Taking a significant detour from some of his other work, The Shape of Water is a tale that features a blossoming romance between Sally Hawkins’s outstanding Elisa, and Doug Jones’ “Amphibian Man.” Set during the height of the Cold War and overflowing with paranoia, the film keeps our gaze firmly rooted in romance, even while the world around seems so full of tragedy. It’s visually stunning and at times, genuinely mesmerising – an incredible achievement even for a director as artistically-skilled as Guillermo del Toro.
4. Pinocchio (2022)
One of the finest technical achievements in recent years, Guillermo’s take on the classic tale is brimming with skill, emotion, humour and outstanding voice work. An exceptional examples of stop-motion animation, it’s hard not to get distracted by the craft on display. Every single frame has been painstakingly crafted by a filmmaker at the absolute height of their power. The titular character aside, the voice work is rich and vibrant, constantly keeping you engaged. An emotionally-rich film that will stand the test of time as one of the finest animation features in cinematic history.
3. Crimson Peak (2015)
In terms of aesthetics alone, this is what most people would point to as Guillermo del Toro’s most on-brand movie. A gothic, fantasy romance heavily stylised with his own creative flair, which packs an incredible one-two punch for terrifying scares and surprisingly tender love. The performances by Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain and Tom Hiddleston are sumptuously subtle, until they explode towards the climax of the film. Yet these performances don’t detract from the true star of the movie – Guillermo del Toro. He is at his most atmospheric, most beautifully wrought, and honestly, close to his most violent. Crimson Peak may feel a tad self-indulgent at times, but it’s a supremely elegant bit of cinema.
2. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
You’re never too old for fairy tales, something Pan’s Labyrinth proves, is a mantra Guillermo del Toro has presumably lived his entire life by. A masterful work that really put the director on the map, set against the backdrop of Francoist Spain, the story follows a young girl named Ofelia who encounters mythical creatures, while being tasked with three trials by a mysterious faun. Long-time Guillermo collaborator Doug Jones gives an unrivalled physical performance as both The Faun and The Pale Man, delighting you and horrifying you in equal measure. Meanwhile, the director adds an incredible poetry to his narrative, with war and unlimited human cruelty blending seamlessly with Ofelia’s descent into the Underworld and the beauty that descent can hold. For its sheer filmmaking prowess and its total commitment to every single spellbinding detail, it’s hard to think of a film on this list that is as quintessentially Guillermo del Toro.
1. Nightmare Alley (2021)
Having this at the top of the ranking might surprise a few people, but honestly, Nightmare Alley is a fucking masterpiece. From its impeccable production design and costume work to the star-studded cast, all of whom are swinging for the fences, to the bleakest of endings that wraps up the whole film with beautiful despair – Guillermo has simply never directed a finer film. Following Bradley Cooper’s Stan as he joins a carnival, the film takes us on an incredible journey of noir thrills and delightful degradation, culminating in one of the director’s best endings in recent years. There are so few directors who could commit to such a tale of eventual despair, but luckily, Guillermo del Toro is one of them.