Pan’s Labyrinth
by Brendan Berry
Now that the cold weather has finally arrived, bringing snow and freezing winds, it also brings a multitude of cringe-worthy cinematic debacles to hit our theaters. While I’ll admit that I love snow and the winter-esque atmosphere, I find myself dreading the months of January and February, a time span where the box office turns into an establishment filled with the worst movies that come out all year. Packed with mostly overtly theatric and gory horror films, these winter months leave me yearning for popcorn with way too much butter, and to sit in a theater to watch an entertaining motion picture once again.
It seems that for once, this winter season gives us a bright spot on the horizon, a movie that not only is acceptable, but a movie that is equally visually and emotionally stunning on a level that hasn’t been demonstrated in quite some time. Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth which had a limited release in the United States on December 29th and was released nationally on January 19th, has made me forget all about the surplus of slasher flicks. It has showed me that fairytales don’t always have a glass slipper or magic carpet, and certainly don’t always have a traditional happy ending.
Set in Spain just after the end of the Spanish civil war, young Ofelia (played by Ivana Baquero) and her mother Carmen (Adriana Gil) find themselves in a new environment, heading out to the countryside to live with a Fascist military captain (Sergi Lopez) to whom Carmen is wed and carrying his child. Forced to cope with a new father and new life, Ofelia retreats to her books of fairytales filled with magic and wonder to escape the drastic changes going on around her.
Before long, fantasy blends with reality as Ofelia stumbles into the ruins of a labyrinth in the forest near her house. Here she finds a fawn named Pan who is convinced Ofelia is the long lost princess to an underground world whose soul was lost long ago, and is here to return through the portal at the center of the labyrinth. To prove that Ofelia really is this princess, Pan gives her three tasks to carry out before the moon becomes full.
While facing these tasks Ofelia is faced with the harsh reality that life at home isn’t like the books she reads. Captain Vidal becomes more and more frustrated as the rebel armies in the woods evade his capture and Ofelia’s mother becomes sicker and sicker as time progresses. Through all of this peril, Ofelia finds comfort in Mercedes (Maribel Verdu), the housekeeper who is secretly supporting the rebel forces under the captain’s nose. As Ofelia’s mother’s condition gets worse, Captain Vidal, concerned with having an heir, makes it clear that if it comes down to a choice between the baby or the mother, the baby should be chosen to be saved.
As the story climaxes when Ofelia’s home life and fantasy life merge at the final scene of the movie, it becomes clear that the captain is more of a monster than the creatures Ofelia has faced in her tasks, creating consequences that affect both worlds in which she is such an intricate part.
While the mystical facets of the movie might have been what have lured a large part of audiences to see this film, it becomes a lesser aspect of the movie compared to the war erupting around Ofelia and the consequences it brings for those in her life. Del Toro parallels Ofelia’s fantasy life and home life masterfully, demonstrating that there is evil lurking in Captain Vidal’s house similar to that in the fantasy environments. Del Toro displays how terrible Ofelia’s dilemmas at home are by showing that she would rather face monstrous creatures with a brave face than deal with the thought of losing her mother. This director giftedly blends the two stories, giving the audience a view into how these traumatic adult situations are played out in the mind of a child and her mystical view of the world around her.
Pan’s Labyrinth features an amazing ensemble of actors and actresses that make this movie notable, giving it a depth that I can’t completely relate in words, but there are two incredible performances that stand out. Baquero is dazzling as young girl with a huge heart and vivid imagination. She captures the essence of what it’s like to deal with the type of sorrow that few can say they have faced. At the same time, she is stunning in the way she displays the simplicity of a child in a world of complex adult situations. Secondly, Sergi Lopez does an outstanding job as playing the merciless Captain Vidal. He displays a cold-as-ice feel throughout the movie, making him one of the most ruthless and evil villains to grace the screen in years. Both of the artists, in their own way, make the movie what it is.
Pan’s Labyrinth is more then just a fairytale or a wartime melodrama; even to say that it is a combination of both would be denying credit to everyone who took part in this film. Guillermo del Toro exhibits a talent in this movie from start to finish that tells the audience we are in the hands of a born filmmaker, he captivates us with visual mastery and mixes fantasy and reality together brilliantly. The film displays just how much power one can have in connecting with an audience and bringing a story to life. Pan’s Labyrinth has been one of the best films I have seen in a very long time. Not only was it worth every cent of admission, but I didn’t even mind reading the subtitles.
