El Laberinto del Fauno

My old school friend Robert was visiting this weekend and yesterday while we were on our way into Stockport to visit the shops, we passed the local cinema multiplex and I happened to notice they were showing "Pan's Labyrinth".



This was a film I had been waiting to see, but I had expected I would need to go into Manchester and watch it at the Art House Cinema. I didn't think that a Spanish language film would be on general release, but I was pleasantly surprised. So we popped straight in and bought tickets.



The film was by the Mexican director Guillermo del Toro, who also directed "Hell Boy" and "Blade 2". I do wonder how many people were expecting something similar. If so, they were in for a shock.

"Pan's Labyrinth" could be seen as two films in one, linked together by a young girl named Ofelia. The film is set in 1944 fascist Spain. Ofelia and her pregnant mother have gone to stay with Ofelia's step-father, who is an army Captain fighting rebels in the north of the country. During this part of the story we see many horrifying scenes, as Ofelia's mother struggles with her pregnancy and her step-father tortures and kills rebels. Perhaps to escape from this brutality, Ofelia escapes to an imaginary world (which may be real) populated by mythic creatures, which is sometimes as horrifying as the real world she has left behind. Even though they do initially appear to be two separate stories there are overlaps and parallels between the worlds.



After leaving the cinema, Robert asked me if I had enjoyed the film. I have to say that this film is probably amongst the most unpleasant, nasty, vicious and disturbing that I have seen. So I couldn't really say that the emotion I felt was enjoyment. However I do think that it is a very interesting film that is well worth seeing and experiencing, just don't expect to leave the cinema with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.



I understand the film is being entered for the best foreign language film Oscar at the 2006 Academy Awards.