Pan's Labyrinth

Starring Ivana Baquero, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú, Doug Jones, Adriana Gil.

Guillermo del Toro is in quite an enviable position as a director and writer, able to produce mainstream Hollywood blockbusters such as Hellboy whilst also creating delightfully stygian films such as Pan's Labyrinth. Not only that, but del Toro enjoys massive success with his work, even traditionally less popular non-English titles such as this one. Indeed Spanish cinema has become gradually more mainstream, in part due to del Toro but also thanks to directors like Pedro Almodóvar. Of course Almodóvar has been making extensive use of Penelope Cruz in his recent films, a name and  face which no doubt has drawn more interest to the genre. No bad thing, despite the cynical remarks of some critics.

Pan's Labyrinth is a multi-layered tale, neatly weaving the enchanting fantasy of Ofelia exploring her subterranean fey kingdom with the brutal reality of the Spanish Civil War. Ofelia's recently re-married mother moves her into the home of her new husband, the authoritarian and cold Captain Vidal. Struggling to deal with her oppressive new surroundings, she begins to explore the forest, discovering an ancient labyrinth. Inside she encounters a fawn, who tells her that she is the long lost princess of the kingdom, but that she must undertake a series of challenging trials to prove her worth. Running alongside this is Vidal's determined campaign to eliminate the local guerilla resistance, highlighting the vicious nature of Franco's fascists. The figure of Captain Vidal is chillingly portrayed and his often horrific actions make you yearn for the horror of Ofelia's magical world which, though terrifying at times itself, is at least comfortably distant from the real world. Chances are we won't encounter the cannibalistic Pale Man in the streets, but men capable of Vidal's savagery are sadly quite common. 

I would recommend Pan's Labyrinth even if you tend to be a little wary of foreign language films, the experience is so enthralling and shocking that the issue of reading subtitles fades away as you find yourself immersed  in Ofelia's world. The sparring use of digital effects and more reliance on animatronics helps make the fantastical elements seem more real and immediate, refreshingly different from most modern films. You would be hard pressed to find a film which does dark fantasy so well, even if you do reach for the cushions now and then (Or perhaps that was just me).