Pan's Labyrinth Review Country : Spain Year: 2006 Genre: Sci-Fi Fantasy/Thriller Format: Cinema Running Time: 120 minutes Distributor: Picturehouse Celebrated Spanish genre director Guillermo del Toro turns in perhaps the finest film of his ouvre with this stunning and mesmerizing voyage into sci-fi fantasy.... Credits Written and Directed by Guillermo del Toro. Starring Maribel Verdu, Sergi Lopez, Ariadna Gil, Alex Angulo and Doug Jones. With Pan’s Labyrinth, Guillermo del Toro merges both fantasy, fairy tales, and one of the most touching human stories ever committed to celluloid. It’s beyond anything ever attempted before and the feat is stunning. Moreover there's a real eccentric, oddball charm to the conceptualization of the film's fabulous menagerie of creatures, which include fairies, and the faun played by del Toro regular, Doug (Hellboy) Jones. The sets are an eye-catching array of optical illusions, especially the labyrinth itself, dark forests and awry angles, all concluding at the centre of the labyrinth. There's a dazzling and extraordinary breadth to the film's creations that really is going to need a second viewing to take it all in. There's also an exquisitely beautiful opening and ending to match. El Laberinto del Fauno (PAN'S LABYRINTH) is a fanciful and chilling story set against the backdrop of a fascist regime in 1944 rural Spain. The film centers on Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), a lonely and dreamy child living with her mother (Ariadna Gil) and adoptive father Captain Vidal (Sergi López); a military officer tasked with ridding the area of rebels. In her loneliness, Ofelia creates a world filled with fantastical creatures and secret destinies. With post-war repression at its height, Ofelia must come to terms with her world through a fable of her own creation. Del Toro’s use of fairy-tale quest as metaphorical journey into escapism digs into some quite dark places, although the film had the edge taken off it somewhat by the wonderful, magical performances. Doug Jones as the Pan/Pale Man is brilliant, as well as co-star Maribel Verdú who plays the sympathetic Mercedes. Ivana Baquero is lovely and should go onto a career as an Oscar-winning actress. Sergi López is wonderfully cruel and evil....and by the end, you will be praying for a brutal demise. The sets are as brilliantly crafted as the monsters are terrifying, but strikingly beautiful at the same time. I will never look at grapes the same way again….don’t eat the grapes for God’s sake! As for the direction, you already know going in it’s a Guillermo del Toro film and will be great, but he has really outdone himself in Pan’s. This is his best film yet, and I love his work as it is. Hats off to del Toro for creating a beautiful masterpiece. Pan’s Labyrinth is a beautiful film and there is something genuinely magical to it. Del Toro maintains a perfect suspension of make-believe and the film should be well due critical evaluation as the best fantasy film ever made. It hits the US December 29th, 2006 and grabs the highest Pit of Horror seal of approval. You must see this film. OFFICIAL SITE DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS Review by John Gray, for Pitofhorror.com