History / Fantasy crossover?

Rating: 3/10 (31 May 2007)

The fact that this is a Spanish movie filmed in Spanish language made it necessary for English sub-titles that cannot be turned off. I found it very distracting. I dislike the idea of being pressured into learning Spanish in this manner. The story and plot lean more toward being dismal, rather than concentrating on the child's fantasy. I found myself torn between viewing it as history or viewing it as fantasy. This, added to the forced English subtitling made the film an unpleasant experience for me. The characters were well portrayed, given the script they had to work with. The fantasy creatures were done well, but could have been better. I would like to have seen more on the legend of the Princess, rather than concentrating on the brutality of the Spanish oppression of the time. Were it not for the fantasy element, I would not have bothered with viewing this movie. It might have been better without the fantasy element and presented as a documentary drama.