Pan's Labyrinth starts out as a grim story about the last days of the Spanish civil war but then turns into some kind of twisted fairy tale for adults.
Director Guillermo Del Toro has meshed his story of soldiers and revolutionaries with a dark fable about an underworld princess destined to restore order to an ancient kingdom.
The two stories are linked by Ofelia, who with a faun to guide her, comes to believe she is the princess of this other world. She must complete a series of tasks in order to open the portal and restore peace.
I didn't expect to like this movie as much as I did. It's a heartbreaking tale of cruelty and hopelessness, but just the moment the world seems too oppressive we are allowed to see another world altogether.
The film reminded me of Robert Bresson's Mouchette. Another story of a child who doesn't seem destined for this world. While that film never strayed from the harsh realities, this films flights into fancy feel just as earned, never distracting or interrupting the story.
2 comments:
I have no interest in seeing this... for some reason it reminds me of that one terry gilliam movie "city of lost children" - all dark 'n shit. not that it was bad, cause i liked that movie. "heater."
we just saw borat. fiiiiiinally.
Joel swears this movie is brilliant, but you know I don't trust Joel's opinions. I'll probably wait for the DVD on this.
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