“What happens when make-believe believes it’s real?”

This was the tag-line for Guillermo del Toro’s beautiful fantasy, translated for Western audiences as “Pan’s Labyrinth”. I learned of this film several months in advance and actively made every effort to ensure that a) I knew where it would be shown in my city. b)  All my friends knew about this movie too. I would stop into the Lagoon or Uptown theaters in the months leading up to the opening to ensure that it was indeed playing in Minneapolis. Apparently I wasn’t alone in that.

When a group of us got to the Uptown Theater on opening night in scenic Uptown Minneapolis, there was a line stretching around the corner down Lagoon Av. We waited for about twenty minutes in line; we were not dissappointed.

Doug Jones, the actor who protrayed Pan and the scary Pale Man appeared in person and introduced the film after saying a few words which amounted to a sincere “I put a lot of time and love into this and even learned some spanish for this part (though he was dubbed over), I hope you like it”. Ever since I saw the original Hellboy, I’d been a fan of Doug Jones, if I heard he had a part in a film, I’d make an effort to see it. I saw FF:RotSS only because Jones was slated to play the Silver Surfer (one of my favorite comicbook characters ever!) though, it was decided (wrongfully) to have Lawrence Fishbourne to voice the Surfer. Having only heard his voice for the first time in that packed theater, here is an actor who had basically managed to convey a wide-range of emotions and ideas without using language. 

The movie itself takes place in a fascist Spain during World War II. The harsh reality of war is contrasted by a fantasy world which at times can be no less grusome. Ofelia, a young girl who, with her mother, has come to live with her new stepfather, a especially ruthless captain of the Spanish army who is attempting to root out a group of rebels hiding out in the woods. Ofelia discovers one night that an insect flying about her room is actually a fairy which beckons her to follow it into the woods where she finds a labyrinth deep underground, at its center is the Faun (Pan), who claims to know her true identity and her secret destiny. But unless she completes three tasks by the time of the full moon, she will never see her true father.

This movie clearly had me at the title.. if not beforehand. Given my love of mythology (did you notice the ‘-satyr‘ in my name?), and my interest in seeing  Guillermo del Toro’s take on the myth of the faun and a pivotial point in world history. My only complaint, if it can be called that, is that I would have enjoyed this movie more had it been dubbed and not in subtitles. Yes, I’m so uncultured that I have trouble “reading” a movie… it’s a fault that I readily admit to. However this takes nothing from the visuals, costuming, or acting of this film.

Simply, this movie is stunning on all levels.

I found the young Ivana Baquero very believable as the intrepid and imaginative Ofelia, I tend to be watchful of child actors who obvious mistakes in their lines, but for all I know Ivana was protected in this by the language barrier, in my ignorance and the fact that she won several awards as a young and promising actress I’ll assume she did an okay job. I think it’s worth noting also that this movie won 67 seperate awards, including 3 Oscars. I trust that Guillermo has enough space on his mantle for his future endeavors.