PAN'S LABYRINTH

Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth is an astonishing, vibrant film, alive with magic and emotion, and laced with beauty and violence and the primal fears we carry from childhood. As a work of cinematic fantasy, the film stands easily with the classics of the genre, a touchstone dark fairy tale.

Set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, the story follows Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), a young girl in the twilight time change from child to adult, and her mother Carmen (Ariadna Gil), who travel to a remote outpost to be with Carmen's new husband, the brutal Capitán Vidal (Sergi López). A cruel sadist, Ofelia's stepfather is on a mission to hunt down and exterminate the last remnants of the Republican army that are scattered in the wilderness. Ofelia, a lover of fairy tales, is drawn into one of her own when she discovers the ancient doorway to a labyrinth in the forest, guarded by a faun who proposes three tests for the little girl to discover if she harbours within her the soul of the princess of a magical underground kingdom. The film alternates between the stark, capricious brutality of Ofelia's everyday life and the lyrical, though sometimes frightening, magic of her forays into the fantastical.

Del Toro masterfully weaves together several story strands--Carmen's difficult pregnancy, Ofelia's completion of the three tests, Vidal's unquestioning and cruel extermination, Republican spying among Vidal's domestic staff--into a richly textured and symbolic exploration of the primal roots of fear, yearning for magic, and the source of our will to destroy others. And in the hands of a talented cast, the characters of the piece shine, bringing vivacity to the artful writing. In the central role Ivana Baquero easily becomes the core of the film, a gracile and engaging performance that would be noteworthy from someone twice her age. Sergi López plays the true monster of the piece to the hilt, lending subtle touches of humanity and even eliciting grudging admiration. The supporting cast are uniformly superb, especially Doug Jones as the faun and the white man, two fantasy creatures brought to convincing life.

In the classic Latin American tradition of magic realism, the film never once feels forced, dexterously fusing the fantastical and the brutally real into one organic and fiercely compelling whole. The film is beautifully designed, especially in the fantasy settings and creatures, and the astonishing visual effects do not call attention to themselves but feel like a natural element. At several points a digital character flutters into the foreground of a shot and the camera moves to follow it, creating the impression that the effect is a syncretic part of the sequence.

In the sure hands of Mexican writer/director del Toro, who has now claimed the apex of genre filmaking, the film winds its way to a compelling, satisfying, and intensely moving finale. Pan's Labyrinth is unquestionably a triumph of cinematic imagination.

---
Directed by Guillermo del Toro

Written by Guillermo del Toro

Starring:
Ariadna Gil....Carmen Vidal
Ivana Baquero....Ofelia
Sergi López....Capitán Vidal
Maribel Verdú.... Mercedes
Doug Jones....Pan/Pale Man
Álex Angulo....Dr. Ferreiro