Pan's Labyrinth

Year: 2006
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Cast: Ivana Baquero, Maribel Verdu, Sergi Lopez, Ariadna Gil, Doug Jones

This review is officially the first one I'm writing for a film that's not in English on this blog. Pan's Labyrinth is a Spanish film by Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, a fantasy film set in 1944 Spain.

In a time when Spain is plagued by civil war between its fascist government and the rebels, a ruthless and merciless army captain, Captain Vidal sends for his pregnant wife and his stepdaughter, Ofelia to come live with him in the mountains, where he and his troops plan their next move against the rebels. Ofelia, who hates the captain, but loves her mother dearly, only wishes for the safe birth of her stepbrother and getting away from the horrible place she's in.

When she arrives at the base however, she encounters several strange events, which eventually lead her to an abandoned labyrinth nearby. The captain's head servant, Mercedes tells Ofelia to think nothing of it, but the little girl explores further and meets a talking faun, who informs her that she is the long lost daughter of a king that once lived in the labyrinth. According to the faun, she has to perform three tasks. If she succeeds, she will be welcomed back to the kingdom.

Ofelia obliges, and proceeds to do the faun's bidding, risking her life and her mother's as well, as she evades the attention of the captain. Thankfully she is watched over by the kind-hearted Mercedes, who is secretly working with the rebels. Mercedes' efforts to help them gets harder as the captain intensifies his plans to crush the rebellion using vile methods.

What makes this film ultimately interesting is the storytelling and concept. Here we have two worlds: the dark and brutal reality of the civil war, and the fantasy that eminates from Ofelia's adventure with the labyrinth. They are like two sides of the same coin, both similar and contrasting. There are scary moments from the girl's journey as she tries to complete the tasks, and similarly terrifying violence from the captain's war against the rebels. Guillermo del Toro brilliantly contrasts the two worlds, and tells his story through two pairs of eyes: Ofelia's and Mercedes'. Ofelia is simply a girl who tries to escape the world that is scary and hellish, and finds another that is dark and mysterious. Mercedes is a woman who does what she does because she cares about the people around her, and is willing to risk her life for them, despite calling herself a coward at one point of the film.

And del Toro could probably not pick better actresses to play the two females than Baquero and Verdu. Baquero is only 12 years old, but she gives a heartfelt and outstanding performance as Ofelia. She is adorable without being too sweet, yet brave and determined. Verdu gives Mercedes a strong personality that is required of her, and at the same time does well playing the maternal role to Ofelia. Sergi Lopez is perfect as the cold and merciless Captain Vidal. This guy will be well remembered as a cinematic villain.

At the recent Academy Awards, Pan's Labyrinth was nominated for 6 Oscars, and won 3 for Art Direction, Cinematography and Makeup. It is unfortunate that del Toro did not win for Original Screenplay or Foreign Film, for his film truly is a one of a kind masterpiece. You don't need to be a fan of Spanish films to enjoy this, the excellent storytelling will draw your attention without fail.

I recommend this for anyone who loves a good story. Just don't bring the kids when you see it, the dark and violent themes are definitely unsuitable for them. (4.5/5)