[minusflo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbriant /img/forum/go_quote.gif Excuse my ignorance, but what language is Pan's labyrinth done in? Is it subtitled?

Spanish but subtitled in english. It is very scary and better leave the kids at home unless you want them to have nightmares.

 

[vcoheda]

Quote:

Originally Posted by minusflo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Spanish but subtitled in english. It is very scary and better leave the kids at home unless you want them to have nightmares.

Yes. Spanish with subtitles. The gore did seem a bit unnecessary and there was a lot of it. A lot than one would expect from a movie.

By the way, minusflo, love the avatar. Iron Man (Summer 2008!!!)

 

[lmilhan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phosfiend /img/forum/go_quote.gif It was good, no doubt about it. All the ingredients were there: great acting, editing, good cinematography, good score and sound, incredible and creative production design (creatures, set, costumes etc..) But where was the plot? It was childish, lacked depth, and formulaic. And while some might argue that it was a fairytale intended for adults, (as it is blatantly markets as such here in North America) the film could have attained its intended maturity level without the use of graphic and unnecessary violence. Without the violence, this would have been a great film for the whole family - and I think I would not have the same qualms with its overall lack of cohesive purpose. Good film, but not great.

I couldn't disagree more.

The graphic violence served a very important purpose. It was used to demonstrate the atrocities that often happen during war. I can't imagine how one could make a family friendly movie about war atrocities, and expect anyone to take it seriously. Neither Shindler's List, nor Saving Private Ryan would have been nearly as effective if the violence was lowered to a rated 'PG' level. War is war, horrible things happen and I see no need to candy coat that fact.

Secondly, the little girl was an avid reader, and she used her imagination to escape from the monster that was her stepfather, and other horrible things that were happening around her. During the extreme scenes of violence and atrocities, I found myself wanting to escape to the fairytale land right along with the little girl, and found myself relieved during the fairytale sequences. The violence was a very cleverly used device, and very appropriate and required to make the film as effective as it was.



But yeah, as I mentioned earlier, this movie is NOT for the weak stomached or sensitive people out there. NOT a family friendly movie by any stretch of the imagination.

 

[cantsleep]

Quote:

Originally Posted by minusflo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Spanish but subtitled in english. It is very scary and better leave the kids at home unless you want them to have nightmares.

they'll have a pretty bad nightmare if seen

 

[phosfiend]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lmilhan /img/forum/go_quote.gif I can't imagine how one could make a family friendly movie about war atrocities, and expect anyone to take it seriously. Neither Shindler's List, nor Saving Private Ryan would have been nearly as effective if the violence was lowered to a rated 'PG' level. War is war, horrible things happen and I see no need to candy coat that fact.

SPOILAGE

And, I couldn't agree with you more. But I didn't take it seriously in the context of this film. For me it crossed the line of contextually appropriate and into the realm of "why was that even necessary?". I felt this film has a bit of an identity crisis.

And what are we supposed to derive politically from this film in reference to the war? Her father, the bad guy, was a psychopathic monster. The rebels, or good guys, were not psychopathic monsters - and that's the extent of the development of their goals. One could venture into the clichéd realm of freedom of independent thought here, but that's not justifying very much for me as a viewer.

I still feel this could have been presented with an equivalently dark tone, just minus the violence - then the childish plot holding all the lovely bits together wouldn't have been so out of place.

ALSO - please understand, my historical reference for the subtleties of this particular conflict is next to NOTHING. Consider me more or less uneducated when it comes to Post-War fascist Spain. But simultaneously consider me the average North American viewer... oh god that's sad.

Again, good movie - just not all there.

 

[reivaj]

i thought the movie was pretty good

i saw it with 2 of my friends whom we all saw many discrepencies between the translations though they were minor things.


also for those that saw the movie... is it me or am i the only one who just LOVED the scene with the bottle! the part where you think its going to end but it just keeps on going ^___^

 

[archosman]

Would you say that the labyrinth world was real, or was it all in the mind of Ofelia?

 

[jPoDTGN]

I liked it a lot. I love how it combines so many different genres. I do think it couldve been longer, maybe for a potential sequel? Overall, really enjoyed it.

 

[vcoheda]

Quote:

Originally Posted by archosman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Would you say that the labyrinth world was real, or was it all in the mind of Ofelia?

I didn't really see any indication that it was real. It seemed to be all within her mind. I think a scene at the end pretty much confirms this as well.

 

[Gamemako]

Quote:

Originally Posted by archosman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Would you say that the labyrinth world was real, or was it all in the mind of Ofelia?

The movie gives credence to both theories. Although the movie is about the effects of the war and people involved, del Toro left room for the fantasy to coexist beside its secular counterpart. Del Toro has said that he believes in the fantasy.

Oh, and Pan's Labyrinth was excellent. I think people are sometimes disappointed when they comes to find that the movie is not the fantasy they had expected, but rather something more sobering. Yet still, upon analysis one finds that the spirit of the film is indeed a fairy tale -- a fantastic fable. Those who grew up on happy endings may not quite understand this concept of a fable. The difference between "...and they lived happily ever after" and "...and if they have not died, then they live on today" (traditional English and German endings of fairy tales) is most tangible in this respect. The lack of a true "happy ending" turns many Americans away from this, yet the purpose of a fairy tale is not to tell a simple story but to teach a lesson. There are a number of fairy tales in which the protagonist(s) do not fare so well -- I recall in particular one Märchen (German word for fairy-tale) in which the two children, the protagonists, met their fate as being ground into feed. Such fables are not necessarily happy, but they are inexorably didactic. Such is ultimately true of Pan's Labyrinth, as del Toro lavishes praise upon Ofelia for her sacrifice. That is, Ofelia learns a lesson of selflessness, and, whether actually or in her own mind, is rewarded for her action.

Speaking of which, I really should just stop thinking about the movie and just write an essay for my own enjoyment about the themes permeating this film.

//EDIT: First paragraph addition about del Toro's opinion.

 

[mb3k]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vcoheda /img/forum/go_quote.gif I didn't really see any indication that it was real. It seemed to be all within her mind. I think a scene at the end pretty much confirms this as well.

Wow, I actually never thought of it that way. But what about the scene where the tree-baby was found and thrown into the fire then all of a sudden Ofelia's mother was in pain.

The violence was often times too intense, especially after seeing Ofelia's dreamworld.

 

[nrwilk]

It sounds good, I must check this movie out.

nrwilk

 

[Gamemako]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mb3k /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow, I actually never thought of it that way. But what about the scene where the tree-baby was found and thrown into the fire then all of a sudden Ofelia's mother was in pain. The violence was often times too intense, especially after seeing Ofelia's dreamworld.

Ofelia's dream world is best described as a parallel to her experiences -- that is, while still a fairy-tale world, it is also twisted and ugly. The movie is as much a psychological drama as a fantasy.

 

[philodox]

I liked it, but I agree that I think the fantasy side of the movie should have been explored in more depth than it was. The real world side of it was pretty simple and could have been shortened a fair bit I think. I also thought the ending was weak.

 

[F1GTR]

I agree with philodox. The fantasy part of the film was what was so hyped in the trailers, and you practically saw all of it before even seeing the film. It was a complete letdown for me that Pale Man was in there for a whole total of five minutes.

Overall I think the film is extremely overhyped and overrated at the moment. I just can't understand all the amazing praise it has been receiving. Sure it's a good film, but it's not great. To me it was just another war movie, with extremely graphic violence(not sure how anyone could claim to like "the bottle" scene), with a touch of fantasy added in. A 180 degree turn from the previews and the title for crying out loud. How do you title it with the word "Labyrinth" and then have maybe 15% of the entire film dealing with the Labyrinth and fantasy?

2006 films that I would rate above Pan's are:

The Fountain
Children of Men
The Proposition
The Departed
Perfume
Apocalypto