I got to see Pan’s Labyrinth a couple weekends ago and walked away impressed with the craftsmanship that director Guillermo del Toro had on the movie. Everything was so detailed and beautiful. The movie reminded of other non-traditional fairy tale movies like Labyrinth, Dark Crystal, and The Neverending Story in that all of them have very dark overtones to them and aren’t scared to use them for theatrical effect. Compared to the others Pan’s Labyrinth is much more an adult in terms of content and use of violence, which took me by surprised, even though I know Guillermo del Toro style is a more violent and bloody, but some scenes were relentless. Typical with many subtitled movies people complain about having to read the subtitles, but the story in Pan’s Labyrinth is fairly simple so it isn’t difficult to watch the film with the subtitles, and the natural flow of the dialogue is really a pleasure to see and listen too. I hate watching movies that take place in Spain or Russia and everyone speaks English, it really breaks the immersion of the movie. Overall the movie was breathtaking, and really shows what creative people can do with even a limited budget, Pan’s Labyrinth estimated budget was around $15 million. I really hope the film wins the Oscar for Best Foreign Film and Original Screenplay. Well worth seeing while it is in theaters.
