original tale of fantasy and reality

Rating: 9/10 (21 August 2007)

This movie was definitely better than most. It was quite entertaining. It has some cool special effects, esp. the fawn. Even though it is like a fairy tale, it is rated R for a reason: not for kids. This is a very violent and bloody movie. The scene with the captain beating a man to death in the head was one of the most gruesome scenes in film history. It was worse than what they show in your average slasher flick. Ofelia travels to live with an evil Captain with her pregnant mother who has married the captain. She finds a fairy who leads her through a labyrinth to a mysterious fawn. He tells her she is a princess who must complete three dangerous tasks in order to find immortality. While this is going on, we learn her mother is very ill plus rebels are fighting the soldiers and 2 people in the Captain's household are part of the rebellion. Ofelia also disobeys the fawn and gets into some trouble of her own.
The whole film just has a creepy feel to it; plus it has some very violent scenes. It was just very original. Also the subtitles take nothing away from the film.
FINAL VERDICT: If you like gory movies, this is for you. Reading the subtitles is not bad. Check it out.