Simply Majestical Even In The Darkest Of Times; Pan's Labyrinth Is The Film Of 2006. The Finest and Most Inventive Fantasy Since, Say "Lord of the Rings"

Rating: 9/10 (4 December 2006)

With all the anticipation I had leading up to Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth I was not remotely disappointed with the final outcome. Usually when I find myself anticipating a film I may be disappointed or unimpressed with what was on offer, yet Pan's Labyrinth has everything you could ever want a Gothic fairy tale to have. At first glance a lot of people thought that Pan's Labyrinth was a children's film that looked like something that resembled Alice In Wonderland. Firstly people could not be more wrong, Pan's Labyrinth is a gruelling, disturbing, emotional and brutal journey of light and dark. And secondly even though the film has lose elements of Alice In Wonderland, it's still very different; plus the fact Alice In Wonderland was never a book intended for children anyway.
Guillermo del Toro has been slowly becoming a big name among big-name non-American directors. His first film Cronos was an early 90s film that had some small success, but somewhat unnoticed by critics. He then manages to get a deal for a more mainstream American horror film named Mimic. From there the rest is history with the likes of the chilling The Devil's Backbone, the underrated vampire flick Blade II and then the big money superhero film Hellboy. Pan's Labyrinth is with no doubt his best film to date and remains a modern benchmark in artistic, unadulterated fantasy.
Pan's Labyrinth is the tale of a young girl (Ofelia) who during WWII goes with her pregnant mother to a small army base in deep in the mountain forests of Spain to live with her adoptive father during the pregnancy. The Spanish fascist army are fighting off the rebels who want peace for the country and though the film does not follow historical accuracies as this is intended for the tale of fantasy and reality. Ofelia is not very fond of her adoptive father as her birth father died when she was younger. Ofelia can see that her adoptive father is a truly evil, arrogant and malevolent man so tries her best to keep away from him. One day she a Faun (you'll become suspicious of his presence) meets her, telling her she is a lost princess of an ancient world and says that she'll be able to return is she completes 3 tasks
Ofelia is a truly brilliant character and from the moment you are introduced to her you will realise that she already locked inside her own fantasy world as shown from her looking preoccupied, distant and the fact she has a stack of fairy-tale books. Her mother exclaims "aren't you too old for fairy-tales?" and the girl vaguely replies with a vacant expression showing her obsolete distance. When watching Pan's Labyrinth I felt that it was a very personal tale for Guillermo del Toro as it contained some very individual elements and structure. I felt there was a sort of religious subtext to the film and mystical/mythical symbolism to represent this.
The film's ambiance is one that feels dank, murky, melancholy and eerie. There is a lot of symbolism and metaphors to the fact that the mill is a dark and threatening place where violence looms over the inhabitants like a virus. This represents the general evil that lies in the area and there is not often a lot of light in the film and when there is it's subtler. One evident use of light to show "hope" is when Ofelia is around her mother (this is only evident at rare aspects in time). Scenes of fantasy-like states of mind and the stark reality generally occupy the film. Something that stands out is the fact that there is so much beauty to be found is such bleak imagery. This all helps to create a remarkable work of art.
Pan's Labyrinth shows what is the best cinematography of the last few years and every shot feels like it's been pondered to the point of perfection. The inner-beauty even in some of the more disturbing scenes is there for you to watch. The uses of light pouring on a man's tortured face and the ingenious creatures, they're almost too weird for comfort. The film's use of heavy rain running through the trees is excellent and each shot captures the sorrowful expressions fantastically. The film also detains a certain amount of hope in even the darkest times; childhood innocence is another implication that the film holds.
While the film will make you sit back in admiration at its deep-rooted Gothic design you'll still be attracted to all the other fine details. For example the remarkable score accompanies scenes perfectly and vividly creates brilliant tones of ambiguity. Guillermo del Toro intensely creates astonishingly grotesque characters (both human and beast) because of handcrafted imagination that has poured into the work. One of the finest elements is in fact the the editing is so precise and unique.
An outstanding work of modern cinema that I'm almost positive will be regarded as a classic in years to come. Harsh, disturbing, bleak, pitiless, cruel and yet it still has a heart. It won't be forgotten as it's packed with thoughtfulness and imagery that will be lodged in your mind for the rest of your life. The best film of 2006 and one that is bound to suspend you in awe from start to finish.