Sickening gore and no room for interpretation

Rating: 3/10 (7 February 2007)

I heard good reviews of Pan's Labyrinth, so I took my girlfriend to a matinée at the local theater. We were pretty intrigued at first, but then shocked when the undeveloped and inexplicably evil villain starts to commit acts of brutal savagery which were shown down the the last splatter of blood. I have no problem with violent films and graphic scenes, but they seemed simply disgusting in this film. I understand that the director was trying to go for a "grownup fantasy" but I felt like I was watching a children's story that had been made into a "grownup" one simply by adding gruesome killing and torture scenes. Implied violence would have been way better in this film. I simply have no idea why a fantasy film would have to show every little detail, and deprive the viewer of the ability to interpret. Fantasy is supposed to paint a picture of a world where I as the viewer can imagine getting lost in for days. This movie didn't leave any room for interpretation, and I find myself completely uninterested in the world it showed.