Intricate, beautiful and sinister

Rating: 8/10 (20 November 2014)

Pan's Labyrinth is the definition of mystical realism; you'll expect the two completely different story-lines to clash, but Ofelia's magical world and the divided Spain during its civil war are blended perfectly. Guillermo del Toro's intricate mind shows its full capacity through this creative, yet surprisingly dark story about the contrast of the adult and child mind in twentieth century war- torn Spain. Ofelia's innocence will be tested as she meets a faun in a labyrinth who will request the completion of three challenges; if these challenges are completed she will achieve immortality and be reunited with her family in a mystical haven. Whilst in the real world she will encounter dehumanisation, repression and the harshness of the physical world.
Pan's Labyrinth's morals may seem slightly generic but the polarization of the innocent child and the relationship-driven, slightly psychotic adult is perfectly executed. Ofelia reads fairy tales and lets her imagination run wild despite her naysaying peers who are too focused on the serious things in life. It can be interpreted in multiple ways due to how sophisticated it is. A favourite of mine is the question of is there much difference between the two lands? With evil on both sides, comparisons between Ofelia's stepfather and "The Pale Man" and even Ofelia succumbing to one of the seven deadly sins, greed, which is shown during the second task.
The character design is incredible, especially "The Pale Man". With simplistic, yet beautiful, CGI used throughout the film, Pan's Labyrinth is a joy to watch. Emotionally, it provides a little bit of everything, it can be tense, sinister, warming and even sad; this compliments the unpredictability of its plot immensely. Its ending is faultless in the way that it can be the typical "happily ever after" fairy tale ending, or end of quite a sad note; This is purely dependant on your frame of mind. In fact, the only negative I found with Pan's Labyrinth is that I wanted more of focus on the Faun and the Labyrinth; I was actually quite disappointed with the lack of emphasis on it. The fact that it excelled in character design makes me wonder why there were not more mystical characters present in the film which I felt was needed.
Overall, Pan's Labyrinth is a fascinating film which is well worth a watch. The positives outweigh the negatives wholly and the only negatives I found were entirely personal. I strongly suggest for you to read up on the analysis of the film after watching it to discover its hidden metaphors and meanings as they make the film all the better.