Pan's Labyrinth

Post by **Pearly Di** » Mon Dec 11, 2006 4:35 pm

On Friday night Jewelsong and I went to see Pan's Labyrinth, the latest movie from the Spanish film-maker Guillermo Del Toro.

What an absolutely incredible film. The most stunning film I have seen all year - apart from the fabulous Infamous, which I also saw over the weekend (thanks to BAFTA).

By the way, Jewelsong reckons that Pan's Labyrinth is a mistranslation of the Spanish El Laberinto del Fauno and that a more accurate rendering would be 'Labyrinth of the Faun' ...

Anyway. Whatever. This is a dark, dazzling fantasy of 'shivering intensity', as one critic describes it.

The story takes place in Spain, 1944, and Ofelia (played by the luminous Ivana Baquero) is a young prepubescent girl whose pregnant mother is married to Capitán Vidal, a sadistic Fascist, a man with ice for blood in his veins who viciously tortures and kills the members of the left-wing resistance without hesitation or remorse. Ofelia, like any sensitive and imaginative child, escapes into a dreamworld in order to cope and shut herself off from the adult horrors around her. Her secret fantasy world is horrific and nightmarish ... but of course what is happening in real life is even worse. In her dreamworld Ofelia starts to behave like a heroine in a dark fairytale, a mission that spills over into real life as she battles to save her mother and her unborn baby brother.

The cast is terrific. Young Ivana is gorgeously heartbreaking - she's the most wonderful young girl on the screen since Keisha Castle-Hughes wowed me in Whale Rider. Maribel Verdú is marvellous as Mercedes, the fifth columnist in the Captain's household who is secretly helping - at enormous risk to herself - the rebels in the woods. And Sergi López, as the dreadful Captain, Ofelia's adoptive father, is electrifying in the most coldly convincing portrayal of evil amorality since Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List ... his character is colder than Sauron's. In fact, I'd rather face Sauron any day than this guy.

Wow, wow and wow. Pan's Labyrinth contains some truly disturbing and utterly nightmarish scenes. Each scene drips with unseen menace, the dread of violence about to break out any moment ... either in real life or in Ofelia's dreamworld. Oh, how I feared for Ofelia, her mother, and Mercedes, all the way through the film ...

But the film is also deeply moving and emotional: it's not a gorefest (the violence, when it occurs, is shocking but not gratuitous) but a powerful and heartbreaking parable of a truly transcendental quality.

Wow! - it's rare, but wonderful, when cinema is this thrilling.

If the Americans here have a chance to catch this: see it, see it, see it.

I believe it opens in Australia on 8 February.

See it. It is just FANTASTIC.

(And having seen what a class act Del Toro is, would I ever like to see him tackle 'The Hobbit' ... !!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Post by **Alatar** » Mon Dec 11, 2006 4:53 pm

Its not playing in any of the Cinemas near me, but I have found an "alternative" location. Will hopefully see it soon!

Post by **Pearly Di** » Mon Dec 11, 2006 5:00 pm

Oh, good!

I will eat my hat if you're not impressed by it, Al.

It needs a big screen though for full impact.

But, hey ... we all need 'alternative locations' from time to time ...!

Post by **eborr** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 3:30 pm

i'm very jealous, as a rule I only go to see films which I can take the kids to, Am a big del Torro fan.

Alatar, if you do have an alternate source and it is communicable could you pls pm me with or or alternative im to eborr at btopenworld dot com

Post by **JewelSong** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 8:54 pm

Di is right, this movie was absolutely stunning. One of those films I keep going over and over in my mind. Very powerful, both visually and through characterization. Full of symbolism...it's like a dark fairytale...or maybe the way the original fairytales were, before Disney got hold of them!

Di and I sat motionless through the entire film and when it was over, turned to each other and just were like..."WOW!"

Highly recommended!

Post by **TheWagner** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:33 pm

I hate to sound too over-the-top, but this is simply the most amazing film that I have seen in years. It is a powerful story about how we might tell ourselves that we are where we want to be, but that this is (to varying extents) a fantasy: too much else is at work.

Everything about this is superb: acting, direction, effects.

Wow.

Post by **ToshoftheWuffingas** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 11:28 pm

Hoping to see this next week.

Post by **Primula Baggins** » Tue Jan 30, 2007 5:16 pm

At Ax's request, the spoilery discussion has been split off to a new thread.