Fantasy fans must be really starting to mourn their fruitful cinemas to gaze upon the monsters and magic revived by the Lord of the Rings trilogy. With another year before we see the first of the wonderfully-written His Dark Materials trilogy (although it supposedly lacks any reference to god or religion, a sin in my book), and with The Hobbit possibly being taken away from Peter Jackson’s palms (revenge for the 3 hours of King Kong, perhaps), what are they to do? Eragon doesn’t count, that’s just Lord of the Rings rehashed with dragons. However, out of the shadows (i.e. Spain) comes a film that manages to create its own fascinating world.
Rather than stick to an alien world of events, Pan’s Labyrinth juxtaposes the supernatural realm to that of 1940’s Spain, where the Fascist regime is doing its best to quash guerrilla activity in the mountains. The story is told through the eyes of Ofelia, whose mother Carmen has recently remarried to El Capitan Vidal. All you need is a glimpse of his leather gloves to realise he’s a piece of work. El Capitan seems more interested in the fate of his unborn child rather than Carmen, whose health is deteriorating. Ofelia feels unwelcome in the wooden resort of militia, and escapes into her books and surrounding foliage. While wandering, she uncovers a strange labyrinth, in which she meets a faun who sets her three magical tasks to complete before she can return as rightful heiress of the underworld.
As simple as this sounds, the film is a complicated friction between fantasy and reality. We follow both Ofelia and her tasks, as well as the nearby rebels, who are utilising the local doctor and maid of the Fascists as benign spies. My main problem with this film is the disparity between the two stories. I felt myself more emotionally engrossed in the wartime drama, with Ofelia’s journey acting as visually-pleasing asides. The film does tie these strands together at the very end, but only on a thematic level. For this film is an ode to the imagination. It is Ofelia’s insistence on entering the world of fantasy, despite threats of punishment, that moulds her moral fibre enough to complete the ultimate task at the film’s climax.
Director Guillermo Del Toro does an excellent job in sustaining the drama in two tentatively linked stories. His depiction of a Fascist Captain may be a little stereotypical, but the film’s pace is enough to assure astute attention is maintained. On the fantasy side of things, the CGI effects are utilised delightfully sparingly. The film also features one of the creepiest scenes in recent years, when Ofelia has to bypass a seemingly blind, faceless creature, to achieve one of her goals. The creature’s movements are disturbing enough to rival Sadako.
Pan’s Labyrinth may not have enough fantasy to keep Magic The Gathering players content, but it is nevertheless a film full of emotional and visual depth.
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