A disappointment

Rating: 6/10 (3 January 2007)

I was all prepared to love this movie. I loved "La Cite des Enfants Perdus" (City of Lost Children) and have no problem with dark fairy tales. Given all the hype surrounding Pan's Labyrinth, I was therefore excited about this movie. In the end, I have to say that the only thing about this movie that is excellent is the cinematography and music. Beautiful velvia, dark, high contrast and moody shadows fall across the screen surrounded by a haunting, plaintive lullaby. However, beneath this superficial gloss we find a disorganized, messy movie, full of loose ends, gratuitous gore, and simplistic characterization. Could the Captain be any more evil? How over-the-top does the Captain have to act before he evokes laughter rather than -the intended- fear, contempt? How much more blatantly obvious did Mercedes before the captain acted on it? Just what point is achieved is showing the Captain mash a peasant's face in - and later, - sow his own lip? Gore in movies like "Saving Private Ryan" had a point - here they seem gratuitous. How much more saintly could the rebels be? And what of the obvious set up for a sequel - the captain's baby in the rebels' hands - could it be any less subtle? Finally, and most importantly, can the aftermath of the horrendous Spanish Civil War really be simplified to such black and white characters?
Let's call this movie for what it is - a promising, but flawed, exercise by an up-and-coming director. It is a beautiful picture saddled by overwrought and melodramatic characters that drain the storyline of moral weight. If this is an excellent movie/fairy tale, as we are told by Cannes and critics everywhere, I'll remind you of a fairy tale that _does_ pack some punch - "The Emperor's New Clothes".