The Shape of Water (2017) Ending Explained
tl;dr: The Shape of Water (2017) concludes with Elisa Esposito, a mute janitor who falls in love with a captured amphibious creature, orchestrating a daring escape for him. After a violent confrontation with Colonel Strickland, Elisa is fatally wounded, but the creature heals her and takes her to a watery sanctuary, where her neck scars transform into gills, implying she can now live underwater with him. The film ends with a poetic narration suggesting their love transcends the boundaries of humanity.
Detailed Explanation of the Ending
The climactic finale of The Shape of Water is a blend of tragedy, romance, and fairy-tale magic. After Elisa and her allies-her neighbor Giles and coworker Zelda-help the Amphibian Man escape from the oppressive military facility, Colonel Strickland tracks them down. In a brutal confrontation, Strickland shoots Elisa in the abdomen, seemingly killing her. However, the creature, enraged, kills Strickland and then carries Elisa's body into the canal outside her apartment. As they sink into the water, the creature's healing abilities revive Elisa, and the scars on her neck-previously alluded to as a mystery-transform into functional gills. The film's narrator (revealed to be Giles in the final moments) poetically describes their love as eternal, suggesting they live happily ever after beneath the waves.
Symbolism and Themes
The ending reinforces the film's central themes of love transcending societal norms and the beauty of the "other." Elisa, a mute woman marginalized by society, finds true connection with a being even more outcast than herself. The transformation of her scars into gills symbolizes her full acceptance into his world, completing her arc of self-actualization. Water, a recurring motif, represents fluidity-of identity, love, and freedom. The fairy-tale structure (complete with a narrator) frames their love as mythic, elevating it beyond the grim realism of Strickland's violence. The contrast between Strickland's rigid, toxic masculinity and the creature's gentle, intuitive nature underscores the film's critique of 1960s-era oppression.
Unresolved Questions & Possible Answers
- What were Elisa's scars from?
- Possible Answer: They were remnants of a childhood injury that left her mute, but their transformation implies a latent connection to the aquatic world-perhaps she was always meant to join the creature.
- Is the Amphibian Man a god or just a unique species?
- Possible Answer: The film hints at divine qualities (healing, resurrection), but his origins remain ambiguous, leaving room for interpretation as either a mythological being or a scientifically undiscovered creature.
- What happens to Giles and Zelda afterward?
- Possible Answer: Giles' narration suggests he finds peace in their story, while Zelda likely continues her life, possibly wiser for her involvement in their rebellion.
Director Guillermo del Toro's Intentions
Del Toro has described The Shape of Water as a "fairy tale for troubled times," and the ending reflects his signature blend of darkness and hope. By allowing Elisa and the creature to escape the cruelty of the human world, he subverts traditional monster narratives, where the "other" is destroyed. Instead, their union is a triumph of empathy over fear. The film's melancholic yet uplifting tone mirrors del Toro's belief in love as a transformative force, even in the face of societal hatred. The decision to give Elisa gills is deliberately fantastical, reinforcing the idea that true love defies logic and convention.
Personal Opinion
The Shape of Water's ending is deeply satisfying because it commits to its fairy-tale logic without undermining its emotional weight. Elisa's "death" and resurrection could have felt contrived, but the film earns it through its meticulous buildup of her loneliness and longing. The visual poetry of the final scene-her floating in the creature's embrace, bathed in greenish light-is hauntingly beautiful. Strickland's grotesque demise feels cathartic, a fitting end for a villain who embodies bigotry and entitlement. My only critique is that the gill reveal, while poignant, might feel abrupt to some. Nonetheless, the film's unwavering romanticism makes it one of del Toro's most tender works, a testament to love's power to redefine destiny.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, The Shape of Water is a story about finding belonging in a world that rejects difference. The ending doesn't provide concrete answers about the creature's origins or the practicalities of Elisa's new life, because those details matter less than the emotional truth: love, in its purest form, can rewrite the rules of existence. Whether interpreted as literal or metaphorical, their underwater happily-ever-after is a defiant celebration of the unconventional, a message that resonates long after the credits roll.