This bleak story comes to you in the form of a fairy tale. A Disney fairy tale this ain't; really though, if you think
about it, real fairy tales are just as bleak as this one. Look at the Grimm brothers and Hans Christian Anderson. Do you
know how severely edited some of these stories had to be before anyone could make a movie out of them? I'm not sure what
the point of such grim (no pun intended) tales were; probably just folklore of the people written down. I might know English
literature very well but folklore and I are still getting acquainted. This isn't a real fairy tale; it's an original story
with original ideas. It's not really a horror story either. But it does show that our minds offer an escape from the cold
cruel world. But sometimes the world inside our heads is just as bad as the world we seek to avoid. This is an interesting
film in that it blends horror and fantasy very well but does not make this a fantasy or horror film. It's historical and
uses a girl as the means by which it delivers what it has to say.
There are two ways to see the film. The first
is very basic: the world in which Ofelia sees is entirely inside her head and is crafted by her own imagination. In this
way the film is more of a horror film; Ofelia uses her imaginary world to escape the horror that she faces in the real world--the
captain, her mother's troublesome pregnancy, the war. If you look at the film this way then it's message is that our minds
can take us away from the horrors we face in our lives, even though the world we imagine in our minds, however wonderful it
may be, can be as cruel as the world we seek to escape. Ofelia makes sense of her situation by creating the faun and his
fairies, but also the Pale Man and the giant toad who stand in for the evil she sees outside her mind. In this way the film
is more of a horror film.
The other way you can view this film is thus: Ofelia's world is real, but since she is
pure and innocent only she can see it. This other world that she comes to know offers her promise of a different life, a
better life if she proves herself worthy to leave the world she now lives in. The film then suggests that the imaginary world
(as we might call it) might not be so imaginary at all. Now the film becomes a fantasy.
It's nice that the film
lets the viewer make up his/her own mind as regards to how to view this film. It gives enough proof to argue either side
and does not give a concrete explanation. If you want to take the more 'realistic' approach and say that Ofelia's world is
entirely in her head, then you can argue this by pointing out that no one else sees the faun or fairies (note the scene where
Capitan Vidal sees Ofelia in the labyrinth talking, but he sees no one). You could also argue that Ofelia creates the creatures
from the books she reads. She reads about fairies and then imagines that she sees them. Everything is imaginary, and as
you know children have very active imaginations. Hers is her only way to escape the troubled world. Also, none of the other
adults believe what she says she has seen, even though Mercedes says that she used to believe in fairies as a girl.
But
you could just as easily argue the other point. Because of her innocence only Ofelia can see the creatures that she meets.
Mercedes even says that when she was young she believed in fairies. The labyrinth itself is real, and it is suggested that
the fig tree is as well. And Ofelia knew of her mother's near miscarriage because of the book. There is also the Mandrake
root, which apparently helps her mother get better as the faun said it would; everyone sees the root and when it is burned
Ofelia's mother goes into labor and subsequently dies. The pictures of the faun on the labyrinth also suggest the reality
of the other world.
I think the film also suggests that Ofelia's world, the magical one, is very real, and that
there are other worlds like this, or perhaps this one itself, that exist around us. Those scary noises in the night? That
tapping at your window? The feeling that something is with you in the room? Something else is there, and it wants you to
know it. Perhaps the film suggests that as we grow old we lose touch with magic and magical worlds. Perhaps due to the loss
of innocence and the world hardening us up, or due to the loss of our imagination. There is no way to know for sure if magic
is real and if other worlds exist; skeptics would say definitely not and I would be quite tempted to agree with them. But
the truth is we will never know. You can't prove one way or the other, as this film points out. This is as much a fantasy
as it is a story about a young girl trying to make sense of her world. That said, however you view the film and whatever
you get out of it, it is a beautiful story. It's certainly not one I have come across in quite a while. Truly a fantasy
for adults, although I can see quite a few skeptics and hardened (I dare say cynical) adults saying 'What a great story but
it's obviously not real' and leaving it at that. But it's so much more and I would hate for anyone to not look deeper into
this. It's a real work of art. Not just the story, but the way it is filmed as well. The colors are so rich and vibrant,
mostly blues and greys but the director and filming crew captured the true essence of color here. The acting is very good
too but everyone is Spanish and maybe I can't quite judge foreign actors as well as I can English/American ones.
A
minor disclaimer before I end; the film is very depressing. There is a very sad death (a couple actually) a LOT of peril
and it's very bleak. There's not much hope here. And it is violent. It almost seems stylized because of the way the movie
is filmed but it's not. It's very real; not 'Saving Private Ryan' real as if you're really there watching it all happen but
more real than I have seen in many other films. It's quite brutal. There isn't much violence, but when it's there it hits
you in the face. I'm not a big fan of violence so this put me off a bit in the film, but it shouldn't keep you from watching
it.
I highly recommend this, unless you don't like reading subtitles because this film is not dubbed and you'll
be forced to do this for two hours. But it's a great story, a beautiful film. And it makes a good point. It blurs the lines
between reality and fantasy; who's to know what's really around us, what we can't see? Who really says that magic isn't real;
who decides? And who's to say that those creaks in the house and shadows on the wall and odd everyday occurences that we
blame on ourselves or others or the pets isn't really something else? That's not to say that it's something evil; it might
not be. But regardless, the next time your mother tells you that those shadows and that creaking is just the house, take
her words with a grain of salt and look at her skeptically.
Best
moment: I don't know; the whole film is good,
Worst moment: Worst as in yuckiest? Then there are many.
Best
quote: It's not really quotable.
Why you should see it: It's beautifully filmed and acted, and the story is beautiful.
It's original and sublime.
Why you should choose something else: This film requires thinking while viewing, and
it's violent. Not for the faint of heart or simple minded.
