Country of origin: Spain
Pan's Labyrinth tells the story of a little girl named Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) who is the lost princess of the underworld and of her adventures to return to her kingdom. Set in Spain during World War II, Ofelia and her mother move to a hidden camp to be protected by the Captain Vidal (Sergi Lopez) as Ofelia's mother is to have his child. Ofelia finds living at the camp hard and disturbing. One night she is visited by a fairy and brought to a labyrinth on the camp grounds where she meets a faun (Pan). He tells her of her previous life as a princess and that in order to return to that world she must perform a series a tasks to return home. And so starts the adventures of Ofelia and her survival of both the war and the dangerous tasks.
I believe that Pan's Labyrinth is one of the best movies that I have ever seen. Although the movie is in Spanish, the story is beautiful, creative, and timeless. The imagery is perfect for this film, very dark but colourful at the same time. This is definitely not the type of fairy tale that you would tell children at night, but that is what I like about it. It is not your typical happy and bright Disney movie; it shows the darker side of a fairy tale as it is set in the war. There is a lot of gruesome deaths and lots of gore, but I think that there should be more movies like it. What I did not like about the film is that it focused a little more on the war then it did about Ofelia and her tasks, and that took a bit of the magic out. Also, as the movie is in Spanish, it had subtitles instead of being dubbed. I believe that keeping the film in Spanish gives it a unique quality unlike other films and really brings you into that culture, but with the subtitles I was focusing more on reading the story than trying to watch the film. Despite the subtitles, I think that this film deserves to win every Oscar that it is nominated for! This movie is spectacular, unique, and a breathtakingly beautiful fairy tale about good triumphing over evil, and finding your way home.
1 comment:
I've been eagerly awaiting this film since its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival at which point it received a generous amount of positive buzz. It's encouraging to read yet another glowing review.
-Kurtis
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