El Laberinto del Fauno (m2)

 Fairies meets Fascist Spain in the stunning, eerie fantasy film, "El laberinto del fauno", or en inglés, "Pan's Labyrinth". A favorite among many since the movie came out in 2006, Pan's Labyrinth continues to be a complex source of wonder for me.

      The genius of Pan's Labyrinth lies in a multitude of factors, perhaps the biggest being the underlying message that fantasy is a very credible way to escape the real world. A young girl, Ofelia, meets a mystical fawn, and carries out tasks using a magical book as her guide, so she may inherit the kingdom she is truly from. Meanwhile, in reality, the Spain of 1944 is filled with resistance fighters and fascist fighters. Ofelia's love of fairy tales marks her in a world filled with some very real horrors. As the movie progresses, and fantasy and reality mesh together, it becomes clear that bits and pieces of each side are present. There is gluttony, carnage, beauty, life, and death all mixed into one. The images of Ofelia's reality are made understandable, and ironically more palatable, when we see her take on tasks as Princess Moanna, her fantasy identity.

 There is, of course, just the sheer physical awe that "El laberinto del fauno" managed to accomplish. The sets were mostly constructed from scratch. Two of the primary mystical creatures, The Pale Man and the Faun, were at least 50% constructed from costume and makeup. True, CGI helped to take care of details, but I think it's fair to say that quite a bit of the movie magic in this film was hand crafted from the wizards headed under del Toro. 

     I could gush over "El laberinto del fauno" for hours. But, it is just a wonder you'll have to see for yourself. I won't lie, there is some carnage here and there (notably in the famous "dining room" scene), but it is all in the spirit of the fearful fantasy genre. The ugliness that coexists with the beauty of this film is something actually quite common in fairy stories, although most people would disagree with this dark truth, most likely thanks to popular adaptations and movies (read: Disney films). In the end, it makes for a remarkable film, making comments on social, cultural, emotional, artistic, and philosophical levels. These messages are for you to adventure through and decide.