Member review

I would not hesitate to call Pan’s Labyrinth a ‘modern classic’. With an eleven year-old lead and opening narration that mentions a Princess and a King, you may (as I was) be lulled into an initial false sense of security – but instead, the film is a perfect blend of this fantasy fairy tale and dark, wartime grit – and I feel there’s no better time to talk about it than as director Guillermo del Toro is achieving more mainstream critical acclaim than ever this awards season with his newest film, The Shape of Water. Though Pan’s Labyrinth boasted six Academy Award nominations and three wins (for cinematography, production design, and make-up) back in 2007, The Shape of Water tops the board at this year’s Oscars with thirteen nominations. But it is extremely unlikely that del Toro would be where he is today without his now twelve year-old film.

In any other film, the two contrasting sides of this narrative would almost definitely clash and ruin the film entirely, or one half would clearly be better, leaving the other half a let-down – but to me, the two sides of Pan’s Labyrinth simply elevate each other, leading to effective tonal shifts and a well-paced, invigorating narrative. Ivana Baquero plays young Ofelia with a commendable realism for such a young actor, (which are notoriously hard to find) not to mention the fact that she is surrounded by fantastical creatures as well as having to act around certain elements to be added later with CGI. Baquero acts with the believable fear and wonder of a child but is still a compelling lead an audience can care about and root for. It is this side of the story that provides many of the film’s now iconic visuals, for instance characters Fauno and the Pale Man both played by the irreplaceable (and long-time collaborator with del Toro) Doug Jones, unrecognisable in heavy prosthetics – it earned that make-up Oscar. The fantasy presented in the film is in brief but powerful bursts, full of subtle symbolism and suspense, it feels as real, and dangerous, as the war.

Said war is the Spanish Civil War of 1944, and this side of the film is just as gripping and masterfully made, however. To me, Captain Vidal (Sergi Lopez) is one of the all-time great villains; cold, brutal, intelligent and hiding the crucial weakness that makes him so captivating. Vidal is also backed up by just as memorable imagery – watching him shave, listen to records, restore his father’s watch and later stitch up his own face in his clockwork office (the production design Oscar was well-deserved too) is oddly chilling. Despite the young lead and fantasy present in other scenes, del Toro does not stray away from the brutal and bloody side of war, while still including his amazing character drama – Captain Vidal’s assistant Mercedes (Maribel Verdu) is another great example of this: a character that could easily be reduced to a love interest or tragic death to motivate a male hero is given the action, intellect and cool lines to do the heroic business herself.

Honestly, I can’t think of a single thing I’d change Pan’s Labyrinth; the music and cinematography are both stunningly beautiful, the pacing is spot on and the suspense and emotion of it all gets me every time. If I had to have a complaint, Ofelia’s mother is slightly more of a plot device than a character, but there are enough well written and acted characters in the rest of the film for me to forgive that. What I love about del Toro’s films is the passion you can feel every moment, and none of them give me that buzzing energy like Pan’s Labyrinth.