Pan's Labyrinth: A Twisted Fairytale

One would think the premise of a normal girl turning into a princess provides the basis for a happily ever after fairytale, but we all know our most respected director Guillermo del Toro better than that. Pan's Labyrinth goes past and further beyond than the darkened fantasies of Tim Burton, and brings us a beautiful world both resplendent and horrific. This film is a must see, and it's no wonder Pan's Labyrinth is on the imdb top 250 sitting comfortably at rank 120 as I write this blog post.

If you haven't seen this film yet, then it certainly would be an eye opener for you.

Set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, we are introduced to Ofelia who along with her pregnant mother are moving into a forest to stay with her stepfather Captain Vidal. I have to admit I'm not the best at summarising stories, and especially since this is one of those you'll have to see for yourself.

Let's just say this world Ofelia moves into, is both fantastical as it is dangerous. While she tries to fulfil three tasks given to her by the mystical faun to prove herself as the real Princess Moanna of the Underworld, her stepfather makes the world around her a real dystopia as he attempts to hunt down rebels and control all those around him.

One thing (out of the many superb things) that del Toro does in this film is that he somehow allows both realms of fantasy and reality to converge, but at the same time never really. All the fantasy elements in the film are mostly present through Ofelia. When she isn't there, there's no fantasy. Keep in mind she is the only child besides her baby brother in the whole of the film, everyone else: adults. This really says something about the way we, the audience, see the film. While we can see fantasy in the film, just like the adult cast we cannot believe the truth of it.

While we root for Ofelia's success in becoming a princess, we know this is just a fallacy to make the bleak reality of the film seem less than it is. Hell, the ending even gives us both sides of the coin of fantasy and reality. (one I'd refrain from explaining due to spoilers). Let's leave it at the fact that del Toro wants us to make a decision of how we watch the film: either through harsh reality, or sublime fantasy. But the reality is (ironically), the latter is hard to choose.

See for yourself:

James R