This is an exceptionally difficult movie to describe, never mind assess. On one hand, it has the simplistic charm of a old-fashioned fairy tale, with high stakes, magical and arbitrary rules, and an easily manipulated heroine. On the other hands, it is a depiction of a brutal despot’s heartless greed for an heir and power over his countrymen in unstable 1944 Spain. Is the juxtaposition a statement on the importance of beauty, magic, hope, and wonder for a peaceful world, or are we witnessing an escapist fantasy of a traumatized child?
Little Ofelia, with her pregnant and sick mother, step into parallel worlds of hell and enchantment. Ofelia encounters a tricksy faun, beguiling her with common fantasies of escape and elevation, and he seems involved in the mundane world’s events even as they seem disconnected from Ofelia’s fate. Her new step-father, the Captain, is a man of vicious heartlessness, barely bothering to keep up appearances of normal human compassion. Are Ofelia’s nocturnal journeys into the Labyrinth merely palliative dreams, salve from the horrors of war-torn Spain? Or is Ofelia’s experience the truth and the rest willful adult ignorance of how things really are? In her fantastical wanderings, she is rather clumsy, stupid, and slow – whereas in the real world she is more resourceful and clever. When her worlds collide, it is shocking.
Visually (if you can get past horrors like men being punched to death with a bottle or someone stitching up his own face), the movie is darkly glorious. It’s shot beautifully, even though some scenes seemed gratuitously amazing. For example, a creepy creature in one of Ofelia’s mythic tasks seems only to have the purpose of starring in “freaky, dude, let’s go see that” publicity photos. Pan himself is incredible. He’s all bark and fairy circles, moss and goaty guile. The score by Javier Navarrette is delicious, very different and interesting, well in keeping with the rest of the film.
The real-life intrigues on the real world surface held more tension for me than the fantasy sections (if only because we know how they will turn out, even with obstacles), and there was much more of the mundane world’s tense brutality than I expected. Certainly we fear for Ofelia in her quests, but at least the mythological world is predictable in its rules and behaviors (even when they trick you). The Captain is terrifying in his unpredictability and relentlessness.
It is hard to say, “I recommend this movie,” despite its strong craft and unique style, if only because it is so rough, tragic, and emotionally draining. It is excellently made, and I am very glad I saw it, but I could never see it again, no matter how cool the faun was. Ivana Baquero (Ofelia) does a fantastic job carrying this movie, and Sergi Lopez is more than terrifying as a personage. It’s true that a life without magic is a cold one indeed, but this magic has a terrible beauty to fear of its own.
MPAA Rating R-graphic violence, language
Release date 12/29/06
Time in minutes 120
Director Guillermo del Toro
Studio Picturehouse