A wonderful grim fairy-tale

Rating: 10/10 (19 January 2015)

I was totally captivated by this film, it is a truly remarkable piece of work, an i believe it is the best film made this side of the century.
Stories in films have devolved to the point that they rely on cheap plot twists and overly simple stories that treat the audience like idiots, there are expectations like Christopher Nolan. This film though presented a story so simple but yet had so many layers both physically and emotionally, to say anymore would be to spoil it.
The human characters in it were well rounded, sympathetic and you felt like you had a real bond with them, especially the main character which is possibly the greatest child acting ever. The 'monsters' in the film like all of Dell Toros work feel very real and plausible and they made this film exceptional. They were surreal, sinister, charming, terrifying and intriguing and it only added to the emotional heft of the film. The rapport between the actor and the monsters as well was quite astounding.
The actual world that this was set in with its multiple layers and intricacies was enchanting. Del Toro succeeded in creating a mythical world feel both massive and yet tangible at the same time, added to the desolate woods and cabin it was set in and you gt a brilliant juxtaposition between the mythical land of pan and the real world.
This was a film that left me in a state of euphoria, I had a massive smile on my face for the entire film(except for some quiet creepy sequences and moments when i felt genuine sorrow or dread for the characters). It is the kind of film that tells you that cinema hasn't died just yet, that it hasn't burned down as a result of the corpulent rubbish thrown at the screen by Michel Bay et al. Thank you Guillermo del Toro for making one of the best films I have ever seen.