Quite possibly the best foreign language film I have ever seen!

Rating: 10/10 (19 May 2009)

Don't let the fact that it is in Spanish throw you. This is a dark, moving and sometimes terrifying masterpiece of a film. Director Guilliemo Del Torro directs with briskness and deep understanding of the film. The film looks gorgeous, very beautiful in one scene, and quite Gothic in another. Another director I can think of that directs visually stunning films is Ridley Scott. The music score by Javier Navarette is haunting, poignant and beautiful. The script is very mysterious, suspenseful and genuinely moving at times, and there are some genuinely memorable characters, the idealistic protagonist, the brutal stepfather, the pregnant mother and the caring housemaid. Here is one of the few fantasies where the images stay with you forever. There are beautiful costumes and a stunning forest set, the labyrinth is very Gothic and dark, as is the wise and mysterious faun, and the war and torture scenes are unashamedly graphic. Another honourable mention should go to the monster that tricks children into eating his food when he is asleep, and then he wakes up and eats them. He was so terrifying, the very look of him, made my blood run cold. He is one of the most terrifying creatures I have ever seen in the history of film. All in all, a visually stunning and absolutely magnificent film, with a definite 10/10. Bethany Cox.