Cronos

Cronos heralded the arrival of a new visionary in the world of fantasy cinema. Guillermo del Toro’s extraordinary visual imagination and his filmmaking skills – honed from an early age while collaborating with top special effects and makeup artists – enabled him to create dozens of remarkable works across Hollywood (Hellboy), Europe (The Devil’s Backbone), and his native Mexico (Pan’s Labyrinth).

Cronos is del Toro’s unique take on the vampire myth, set in Mexico. The titular device, which grants immortality, was created by a 16th-century alchemist fleeing the Inquisition in Europe. Four hundred years later, it finds its way into the hands of a kind-hearted antique dealer, Jesús, and his granddaughter Aurora. However, the instruction manual for operating the Cronos device is held by a dying tycoon who has been desperately seeking the artifact for years. The escalating conflict between the characters unfolds through a series of visually stunning sequences that have since become part of the fantasy film canon.

Piotr Kobus

Guillermo del Toro (born 1964) is one of the most acclaimed contemporary directors, a master of dark fairy tales and gothic horror. In films like The Devil’s Backbone (2001) and the triple Oscar-winning Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), he blends realism with fantasy, creating worlds filled with monsters and symbolism. The Shape of Water (2017) won four Oscars, including for Best Director. Deeply humanist, his cinema finds beauty in monsters and the misunderstood. With his unique vision and imagination, del Toro has left an indelible mark on modern cinema.

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