Pan's Labyrinth

I just got home from Pan's Labyrinth. I must say that it is one of the most beautiful movies I have seen in a long time. Guillermo Del Toro couldn't have done a better job. The color schemes were incredible, the labyrinth itself was absolutely amazing, and the creatures will stick with me forever.

It was very fitting to me to see this movie at this time in my life. It shows the human psyche and the escape that can be found in times of trauma, times of chaos, times of unknowing. The innocence of a child is always a beautiful thing and Guillermo Del Toro captured it perfectly on film. There were horrors in Pan's Labyrinth that only a child could encounter and not fear dreadfully and he got that point across well. He also shows how desperate a person can be to escape a situation such as a fascist society and the lengths that they or their mind will go to to find peace and the freedom of having control over their own society, their own kingdom.

I love the duality of the movie. Adults are trying to flee from the fascism that has been forced upon them, and while Ofelia may not quite understand the situation completely, she is also trying in her own way to escape into her own world.

This movie makes me yearn for the days as a child when magic still seemed so real. When you thought there really might be monsters under your bed. And while the monsters would probably scare the crap out of you, there was still that intrigue. In a way I haven't lost that completely. I've just turned that into an interest in the fantastical; in sci-fi and fantasy; art in all of it's forms that offers a taste of the intrigue that was there as a child and still remains today.

The acting was wonderful. I can't wait to see what Ivana Baquero (Ofelia) does with her career. She certainly has a long one ahead of her. Sergi Lopez as Capitan Vidal was also great. It takes a really good actor to make you hate a character so much. The music was beautiful and I will definitely be rooting for this film to win best original score as well as best screenplay in the Oscar's. I think it's actually nominated for 6 awards, but I may be wrong about that. Don't quote me.

It's been a great year for movies for me so far. I've only seen 2 (Children of Men, and now Pan's Labyrinth) but the 2 that I've seen have both been a couple of the best movies I've seen in awhile. I'm so happy that I got to see this movie in the theaters. I highly recommend it to anyone out there. 2 thumbs way up!