Best Spanish!

Rating: 10/10 (22 July 2007)

Winner of three Oscars in the recently held Academy Awards, this Spanish cinematic baby by Guillermo Tolentino is more than just a modern fairy tale for the mature viewers. Its complex juxtaposition of the evils of war and innocence of a child trapped into her own psychological and fantastic labyrinths provides multifarious layers of meanings and depths that current sci- fi/fantasy movies fall short on or struggle to achieve--unfortunately--miserably.
Being one of the very few movies that made my tear ducts function, it is a deeply sad and moving tale--at times, extremely frightening and violent--definitely, it is reminiscent of the original Brothers Grimm fairy tales, which are themselves very twisted and gory. The wit of the screenplay, the complex animation and effects, and the brilliant cinematography surpass most of the movies released last year.
It's destined to be a classic. In all probability, as what "Amelie" did to the French, "El Laberinto del Fauno" has made the Spanish proud for standing out as one of their best contributions to the modern world cinema.