Pan's Labyrinth

Before starting the movie, Pan’s Labyrinth, we watched the director, Del Toro’s, prologue. His comments about how making the movie ravaged him mentally and physically made me want to watch the movie even more. When a director is so dedicated to the making of a film, the movie will most likely end up wonderful.

What appealed to me before I watched this movie was how it is rated R and the main character is only ten-something years old. As the movie started, I was drawn in with the style of the movie; the plot, the serious acting and the visual images. The plot started out nicely, with a pull in. The pull in was the ten-something year old girl, Ofelia, laying down with some blood coming out of her face, which is obviously a sneak peek into the ending. After that image is shown, the story starts back into the beginning. This keeps me in the edge of the seat, wondering how events would lead to that ending. Would there be a happy ending at all?

Then the story is introduced, Ofelia has a sick, pregnant mother that is newly married to a cruel captain that is a part of the fascist society. From there, I keep wondering how Ofelia ends up badly, possibly fatally, injured. Did the captain harm her or did the anti-fascist people do it because she is the captain’s step-daughter? Then I am immersed into the story after the mythical creatures are involved with Ofelia. Now I am wondering if it all is just a child fantasy that protects her from reality, which is dark and filled with hate. Or is it real?

The visuals are amazing, lots of color, rich in details, and the mythical creatures look real. Some movies have pathetic, corny visuals, which can ruin the movie. Also, the graphic violence was definitely not sugar coated for the audience. The violence was not overly done, but appears realistic. These images can make people wince and look away. I have seen overly done graphic violence in other films so I wasn’t affected much with this movie.

Some characters in the movie are inspiring, especially Mercedes and the doctor. They have the intimidating role of spying inside the enemy zone, for the sake of their people. They didn’t crack under pressure and did their best to stay composed. They kept Ofelia safe from the captain and tried to shield her from the ugly events happening in the area.

When the ending unfolds with the captain killing Ofelia and she ends up with her family in the underworld, like she wanted, I am left sad and wondering if the mythology in the story was just Ofelia’s fantasy or was it real? I have decided that the mythology involved with Ofelia was real, for there were events throughout the film that indicate reality. With the disobedience everyone that was against the fascism disobeyed in their own ways; Mercedes and the doctor with the spying and Ofelia with her youthful nature and the stubbornness and hate towards the captain.

The movie in general is fascinating with the well-planned plot, the weaving of the awful reality and the “fantastical” mythology, and the colorful visual effects and the theme of disobedience. Del Toro’s serious dedication pulled off.