Pan's Labyrinth, aka El Laberinto del Fauno on IMDB.
Synopsis: Pan's Labyrinth is two stories. One tells of a young girl, Ofelia, and her mother, newly married to a fascist Captain in Spain 1944. They arrive in the countryside where the mother is ready to give birth soon, and the Captain is mopping up the resistance hiding out in the hills. The Captain is brutal, the resistance is receiving some furtive assistance, and all is not well between the Captain and Ofelia and her mother.
The second story is of the fantasy realm Ofelia discovers in a stone maze behind the house in which she is staying. There she meets a faun who tells her that she is really a reborn immortal princess who needs to accomplish three tasks before the moon is full in order to reclaim her true parents and her immortality.
The movie is in Spanish with English subtitles (by the screenwriter, and not by some translating service, by the way).
Reaction: The movie is lovingly shot and well acted.
Unfortunately, both stories are essentially rehashed fairy tales with little in the the way of surprises, only shockingly immodest on-screen brutality and gore. Things that could have been powerful in subtlety are shot simply with full lighting: guts, bloody heads and faces, sliced open belled and mouths, etc...
The characters, with little exception, are one-dimensional and stereotypical. As cliché stories with one-dimensional characters who experience no growth go, the story is well-told.
Exceptionally good in his role is Sergi López as the brutal Captain. He manages to imbue a small amount of sympathy for his character, even as he tortures, kills, and destroys everyone around him. Indeed, his is the only character who experiences some slight growth within the story. Alas, not enough.
The fantasy story is the weaker of the two stories, as Ivana Baquero, though capable enough, doesn't manage to leave us with anything particularly memorable about her portrayal of Ofelia in her hellish situation. She plays nearly the same character as Stephanie Leonidas did as Helena in Mirrormask, but without exuding a sympathetic or captivating personality.
Incidentally, Mirrormask is a better movie. Naturally, Pan's Labyrinth is rated in the top 250 on IMDB, while Mirrormask languishes somewhere in the netherworld of well-regarded but not quite highly rated enough.
Ah, well. I'm looking forward to seeing Stardust (IMDB), anyway.
Yehuda
6 comments:
Well, actually I always considered this as one story with a few fantasy twits.. Then again, I really loved the film and believed the excessive violence was needed. Must admit I had to drink and smoke quite a bit after the film just to relax.
Great post Yehuda!
I thought I was the only person who really liked Mirrormask... I had been wondering if I would enjoy Pan's Labyrinth. I recently watched The Fountain, and was a little disappointed. I think Mirrormask sets a high standard.
Stardust is a must see.
Thanks for the comments, guys. Is the BBC production of Neverwhere worth it, by the way?
Yehuda
Hi Yehuda,
The Spanish was translated very oddly as well... at least in the English subtitled version I saw. If I didn't understand the Spanish, the English subtitles would have made it even odder.
And the violence was pretty overboard in my opinion. In real life, both sides of the Spanish Civil War were extremely violent and unethical, instead of only the Fascists as the movie portrayed.
Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.
Four things:
Same thoughts, having just watched mirrormask and having seen Pan's Labyrinth a few months ago. Mirrormask was more visually daring, didn't brutalize the audience, and had a smoother flow of action. It certainly was better, I'd say.
2.) You are the number two google result if you search for "mirrormask pan's labyrinth"
3.) DEFINITELY see Stardust (if you haven't already) -- it was excellent.
4.) I just read some of the other posts -- neat stuff!
Well, I guess I have to see Stardust!
Yehuda
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