Pan's Labyrinth [2006] (DVD)

Overrated Very strange film. Set during the civil war with a bit of fantasy thrown in. Doesn't quite work to me. The fantasy seemed a sub-plot more than what I expected to be - the main plot. No-where near as good as I hoped it would be. More dark than magical, pretty violent but then fairy tales are! The actor who played the Captain was very good, the best and strongest character in the film. Very powerful performance. One watch was enough but I'm glad I've experienced it. The cinematography was beautiful.

MOst OverHyped WaR film Mix a war story (civial war) with a fantasy world then put some essence of tragic drama and some Bollywood emotions, you will get this movie right. The film would not have been very different even if you have omitted the fantasy part. They seems to be disconnected somehow. The same old story of stepfather being unfriendly to a child and the child finds shelter in her fantasy. Can you imagine? that after being shot at back, a man can take off his glasses, wipe his nose and then fall down. No joke - the doctor did. Nobody knows why Mercedes left the Captain alive. If she can open his mouth wider, she could have cut his neck more easily. This is stupid, considering a war film. The the faun suddenly forgave her without any real reason (just like he was so harsh on the child who has completed the second task) and ask her to do the third task. It appears, the film is better to continue that way. How come the labyrinth, which opened up for the girl, also opened up for her step-father (when she was chased) ? Was it not that the fantasy world was only for the child? If her father can also enter her fantasy then everything would have been very different. The child died when she came out of the underworld, and that is why she has to take a rebirth to get back to her real father who was waiting for centuries. But at the end, the child has to die again to be reunited with her world. Is it not funny?

Dark and Engaging Fairy Tale I really enjoyed this one. A young Spanish girl struggles in a dark age of war and learns she may find her salvation if she undertakes a fantastical quest. An engaging movie with some unique ideas about fairy tales. That eyeless worm guy is my favourite bit!

Worth getting lost in............ The essense of this movie is the director's brilliance in connecting two wildly different worlds. The reality of the Spanish Civil War is fused with a child's fantasy world of escapism. The two begin apart and as the film progress they melt together beautifully. You are immersed in a world which you believe could exist, the genius of del Toro. The look and feel of the movie bombards the senses, its magical, dark and uplifting all at the same time. To imagine such a creation is beyond most people ability. It would have been easy to get lost in the lush visuals and forget to develop the characters. This doesn't happen. All the actors are fantastic and have separate but important stories to tell. You feel sympathy and revulsion in equal measure. Some reviewers claim the fantasy sections lack structure and substance. I disagree, after all they are the product of the child's imagination. We need to suspend our adult tunnel vision during these sequences, they are supposed to be undeveloped and natural. If you watch this movie again, it will reward you with extra delights such is the richness and depth of this film. It also builds towards a stunning climax. Outstanding and deserves to be seen.

Better than i thought it would be Having studied spanish in school , I decided to watch this as it was on the TV one night, to top up on my spanish skills thinking it was going to be a little kids mild horror movie. How wrong was I ! This is one of the best films that flawlessly mixes, horror, romance, fantasy and even has a few bits that make you cry. After watching this I immediately researched the film and found it was directed by Guillermo Del Toro, no wonder I loved it. I had fallen in love with his work when I saw Hellboy but this film really took the wind out of Hellboy's sails. Overall I would recommend this film to anyone , speak spanish or not. A brilliant film by an amazing director.