In one version of "Sleeping Beauty," the comatose princess wakes up in labor with twins. Even weirder, she wasn't pregnant when she fell asleep. In the original "Rapunzel," the trapped princess and her rescuer engage in premarital sex, resulting in pregnancy. And in one of the first versions of "Little Red Riding Hood," the story ends with the wolf feasting on the little heroine.
These examples illustrate that fairy tales were originally intended for adults to be entertained by stories of horror, gore and other unpleasantries. Writer-director Guillermo del Toro creates another adult fairy tale with the wildly imaginative, spectacular and not to mention chilling "Pan's Labyrinth."
The label "fairy tale" might put some people off, when in fact the movie is so much more than that. It's part fantasy, part horror film, part drama and part political and war film. This is far from any child's bedtime story; taking your children to this film will most likely scar them for life with the intense graphic violence and war struggles. Others might be deterred by the fact that the film requires them to read. Yes, there are subtitles, but it's nothing that requires anything higher than a third-grade reading level. If viewers can get past their own close-mindedness, traveling through the "Labyrinth" will be one of the best times they've ever had at the movies.
In 1944, after the end of the Spanish Civil War, young Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) travels with her pregnant mother to the beautiful Spanish countryside to live with her mother's new military husband, Captain Vidal (Sergi López). This new man in Ofelia's life is as far from a fatherly figure as possible. All of the monsters in Ofelia's fairytale books could not match the menace and inhumanity that Vidal possesses. What he does with an empty glass bottle is one of the most disturbing scenes in recent memory.
Vidal and his men work in the forest quelling the forces that still resist the newly imposed fascist regime, unaware that his housekeeper and doctor are working for the guerrillas. While Ofelia's new father is out slaughtering the guerrillas, she escapes into a world of fairies, fauns, monsters and magical kingdoms, to leave the dreariness of the real world behind.
In the nearby woods, Ofelia finds a labyrinth guarded by Pan (played by the only American actor in the film, Doug Jones), a mystical, tree-like satyr. Pan informs Ofelia that she is truly the long lost magical princess who must return to her rightful world — but of course she first has to complete three trials to prove herself. All these trials are just a way for Ofelia to prepare herself for confronting her bleak reality and the end of her childhood in the heartbreaking, bittersweet ending.
Once the young girl starts living in her fantasy world, she encounters some truly awesome sights. Director del Toro effortlessly creates some amazing visuals to make the fantasy world even more horrific and beautiful. The frightening Pale Man, a baby eater whose bug eyes are in the palms of his hands, and Pan himself, are truly sights to behold. Through the use of some great prosthetics and computer effects, the magical creatures in the film seem all too real.
As imaginative as the visuals are, they take a back seat to the great performances of the cast. Baquero is wonderful as Ofelia; she brings a great deal of innocence to the character, and to avoid empathizing with her character would be a mistake. López does an amazing job of playing the evil Captain Vidal. Where other actors might have gone over the top with the character's menace, he subtly plays up the malevolence. This subtlety makes him all the more terrifying. At the same time, López does bring a certain amount of personality to Vidal, which is often hidden under his fascist ideology.
The best performance in the film, however, belongs to Doug Jones as both the Pale Man and Pan. Despite being under heavy prosthetics, Jones moves incredibly fluidly and always seems to be the actual creature. If fauns were real, this is how they would move. Jones also conveys a wide range of expressions, even with all of the makeup. With a wave of one of his hands, Pan becomes even creepier.
With "Pan's Labyrinth," del Toro proves he is one of today's most versatile directors. He is able to create some fun Hollywood picks, like "Hellboy" and "Blade 2," while still making more personal films, such as "The Devil's Backbone." Overall, del Toro is able to make his masterpiece with "Pan's Labyrinth." Most directors today should hang their head in shame since few can make a film that works on so many levels, pleases even the most reluctant of viewers and remains a personal project to the director. Few could make a horror film as terrifying and twisted. Few could make a drama as painful and compelling. If all directors could live up to del Toro's high standards, all films would be worth that $8 ticket price.
"Pan's Labyrinth" is one of the best films of 2006 — if not the best. It amazes the viewer with both its drama and horror, creating a wonderfully rich world that can be revisited over and over again. For those still suffering from "Lord of the Rings" withdrawal, this will easily fill the void.
Grade: 5 out of 5
