The latest additions of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities ventures into 20th-century horror, with a story of a cursed painting and mutually exclusive twins. The episodes feature several gothic creatures with infinite haunting powers that hold up to the reputation of the series. Notably, the horror anthology series is a collection of eight episodes with different renditions of classical horror, put together by acclaimed filmmakers.
The cast of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities episodes 5 and 6 include Ben Barnes, Crispin Glover, Oriana Leman, Rupert Grint, Ismael Cruz Córdova, DJ Qualls, Nia Vardalos, Tenika Davis, and Gaby Moreno and are helmed by Keith Thomas and Catherine Hardwicke respectively. Moreover, the episodes are based on the short stories by American writer HP Lovecraft.
– Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 5 – 6 Review Contains Mild Spoilers –
Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities episode 5 starts with a story of a well-to-do painter (played by Ben Barnes), whose entire life is shaken to the core after he crosses paths with a rather dark artist, Richard Upton Pickman. At first, the former appreciates the uniqueness of Pickman’s paintings and is attracted by his unusual demeanour.
However, he soon discovers the hellish secret of the dark artist and isolates himself from the eerie friend. Much to no one’s surprise, he fails to leave the dark influence in time and falls prey to the curse of his paintings.
As a whole, the episode works brilliantly well with the concept. But if you compare it with the rest of the anthology series, then it might not scale up to the entire haunting powerhouse. Apart from this, Pickman’s Model will not disappoint you with the ending and produce a shockingly vile climax.
The performance part in this episode is equally brilliant, with a spine-chilling portrayal from Crispin Glover (Back to the Future 2, Charlie’s Angel). The American actor perfectly nails the eccentric dark artist with a petrifying “what was that!” accent.
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Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities episode 6 is a total standout in terms of the series arc, especially with a trademark finish. It starts with Walter Gilman (played by Rupert Grint), a member of a spiritualistic society, whose only purpose in life is to retrieve her sister from the afterlife. He believes that her twin sibling was taken away unjustly by the dark forces, and is determined to go to any extent for the possibility of meeting her back.
Gilman’s will to unite with her sister puts him in the vicinity of an evil witch, who wants to spoil the long waited reunion of the mutually exclusive twins. Other than that, the only thing hindering the force of love is a disgusting human-faced rat.
After watching a full arc of emotions from Rupert Grint, I really wish we could see him more often on the screen. In a short frame of time, Rupert finds a character with a purpose that transcends the afterlife and eventually makes him completely believable to such an extent, that you might even root for the character to succeed.
The episode is engrossing right from the start till the very end. And also awaits a happy ending with an internal twist.
Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 5 – 6 Final Thoughts
The episodes only push the calibre of the series ahead and forward, with the use of several twentieth-century elements of horror. Furthermore, the latest additions will definitely increase your excitement for the series finale.
You can binge-watch the episodes on Netflix. Tell us how you resonated with the series in the comment section below.
Also Read: Guillermo Del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 1-2 Review: Storytelling of Horror At Its Peak