Pan's Labyrinth [DVD] [2006]

If anyone wants to know where the dark, creepy fairy tales of old went, here's a hint: Guillermo del Toro is doing a pretty good job with the fairy tales for adults.

"Pan's Labyrinth" ("El Laberinto del Fauno") is a sequel of sorts to "The Devil's Backbone," a magical realism film about the Spanish Civil War. But this movie takes us deeper into a world that is half real, half ominous fairy tale, with a unique and imaginative story and some really excellent acting -- in short, a triumph.

Time and place: 1944, Spain. Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) and her very pregnant mother travel to meet her new stepfather, the brutal and murderous Captain Vidal (Sergi López). Ofelia loathes her new stepfather, but is transfixed by the eerie forests around them -- and one night she is visited by a fairy, and encounters a giant faun who tells her that she is Princess Moanna of the netherworld, and must return there.

To do so, he tells her that she must do three things, and gives her a strange book. Ofelia menages first task, but is frightened out of her wits by the second task, which involves a hideous monster with eyes in its hands. Even worse, her mother's pregnancy is getting more dangerous. As the guerillas and the fascists clash, Ofelia faces being trapped outside the netherworld forever...

Fairy tales have become cleaned-up and cutesy over time, so that children can read them without nightmares. But del Toro knows that the best fairy tales are the eerie, bizarre ones for adults, that are connected somehow to the real world. That is what makes "Pan's Labyrinth" so brilliantly dark and heartfelt.

Del Toro obviously crafted this with care, directing it in a dreamlike style and brilliant visuals. The eerie atmosphere of Ofelia's wanderings -- the delicate yet menacing faun, the chalk doors, the monuments, and the pasty nightmare with eyes in its palms -- is both a contrast and a parallel with the everyday world, which Ofelia hopes to escape.

At first, it seems like the post-Civil War and fairy tale stories don't mesh, until you see that the "real world" story is Ofelia's motivation to escape from all the fear, pain and sorrow. But Del Toro's biggest triumph is an ending that is beautifully bittersweet, and which turns out to hinge on Ofelia's newborn brother.

But del Toro's biggest triumph is in the instant connection we feel to Ofelia, with her love of the fantastical and her desire to go somewhere "safe." Baquero is absolutely wonderful in this, as a girl who isn't entirely of this world -- in her heart, she belongs somewhere beyond. And López is the ideal villain -- you spend the whole movie wanting to see him gruesomely killed.

Half "Mirrormask" and half gritty war story, "Pan's Labyrinth" is one of the best fantasy stories in years -- dark, passionate and beautifully made. Definitely a great movie.

I bought this film a while ago, but only just got round to watching it this evening. It is incredibly good - probably one of the best films I've ever seen.

For those expecting some kind of Disney-esque fairy tale or a pure fantasy film, you will be disappointed since this is far more in the vein of fairy tales as they were originally - cautionary tales or lurking danger. It is hard hitting and graphically violent, very much depicting the vicious reality of the Spanish Civil War and the brutality of the Franco regime. Nevertheless, it is a gripping tale of perils to be overcome, both real and fantastical, by the young protagonist, Ofelia. Disturbing, moving and unpredictable it is a film I would recommend to anyone who doesn't mind their reality painted in flesh and blood colour and their fantasy a little on the dark side.

Be warned, I am surprised this film got a 15 rating - it is not for the faint of heart and not one that I'd describe as a popcorn or family film by any stretch of the imagination!

The idea of a child escaping from the misery of the oppressive, adult world into a fantasy land of fairy tales, monsters and legends is as old as storytelling. The success of the Harry Potter series and the recent cinema remake of the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is testament to the desire of all ages to escape from the humdrum into fantastical worlds. Even Lord of the Rings sees the Hobbits take on a heroic quest away from their normal lives. Cinema in an age of exquisite computer graphics is perfectly suited to giving visual representation to the imaginations of even the most vivid and creative of souls.

And few people would have as creative or daring an imagination as the director behind Pan's Labyrinth (El Laberinto del Fauno) Guillermo Del Toro. The vicious backdrop to the fantasy is the fisling, futile end of the Spanish Civil War. With Franco's forces victorious across Spain, the Republican forces are forced into remote areas, in to the forests and into hiding. The heroine of the story is Ofelia (Baquero), whose mother is heavily pregnant with the son of her step-father, the wicked Commandant grittily played by López.

The Commandant is posted to a rural area, and charged with rooting out and destroying the rebel forces. He has called for his wife and her daughter to be by his side, as it is proper for a son to be born in the same place as his father. It soon becomes clear that the ruthlessness and cruelty which has allowed the Commandant to forge a successful military career in civil war ravaged Spain is played out in his family life. His wife is firmly under his control, and the whimsical and dreaming step-daughter is terrified into compliance.

Against the backdrop of attacks, brutal army control and oppressive adults, Ofelia reverts to the fairy-tales she loves. She is chastised by her mother for bringing a bulging satchel of books, and soon finds herself in the middle of a real fairytale. She discovers she is the daughter of the king of the underworld, and must undertake three tasks set by the fawn of the title.

The world dreamt by Guillermo Del Toro is fantastical, richly and darkly portrayed and ultimately dreadfully gothic. It is a fairytale hewn from the richest traditions of the Brothers Grimm and the dark forests of a primeval Europe. The fawn is at turns kindly and then devil like in intensity. The tasks Ofelia must undertake are dangerous and bring her into even more fantastic worlds.

The genius of this film is not to allow Ofelia to abandon the real, adult world to pursue the fantasy adventures. Instead the horrible reality of her situation continues to grind on, making her escape into the fantasy even more urgent until it reaches its complete and tragic conclusion.

This is not a light fairytale, or something suitable for children. The Commandants brutality is illustrated in graphic scenes of `justice' meted out to the rebels. He is not shy of torture, and whilst this is not demonstrated as in films like Hostel, the build up is somehow yet more disturbing. The rebels are brutal in turn, and such gore actually saw me hiding behind fingers. At the same time the more horrific characters hewn from Del Toro's imagination, most notably the child-eater, are truly terrifying.

Dark, twisted and ultimately stunning, this film marries the horrific fairy-tale fantasy with the horrors of war to dazzling, stunning effect. This is a tour de force by a film maker who hopefully has many more spectacles left to share.