This is topic Pan's Labyrinth in forum Film Handlers' Movie Reviews at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.


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Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 01-21-2007, 01:23 PM:
 
This is a great movie, and it should not be missed by anyone who loves cinema. An A+ movie.

This is an adult fairy tale. It is gruesome, shocking and extremely (yes, EXTREMELY) violent. It is also sweet, tender and sad.

Special effects are perfectly integrated into this film...anything less would have destroyed the mood. Some of the best effects I've ever seen in a film.

Acting is outstanding. Note that this is a subtitled movie, which may bother some people.

This is NOT a film for young children. It will terrify them more than Bambi did my generation (those of you old enough to remember will know what I'm talking about.)

This film has one of the best 5.1 sound mixes I've ever heard. A lot of care went into this mix. Sound is clear and precise, with some beautiful use of surrounds. This film also demands a good sub system, not for the explosions, but for some of the texture of the film. It really needs to be seen in a well setup theatre. Do not settle for a non-digital presentation...the split surrounds are essential.

Greco scale rating of zero...no hot chicks.

[ 01-29-2007, 11:22 PM: Message edited by: Aaron Sisemore ]
 

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Posted by Stephen Furley (Member # 1277) on 01-21-2007, 02:21 PM:
 
I managed to catch the last screening of this on Thursday, and pretty much agree with Mark. I'd never heard of it until I ran the trailer the week before Christmas. I heard it in SR; I'm hoping we get it back, the Thursday screening was an almost full house so we may well get it again in March, it's not in the February program. If we do bring it back in March it may run in digital, the projector's being installed on February 15th, in which case we will have the full version of the soundtrack.

It is very violent, much more so than the trailer would lead you to think, and it's very realistic violence. There was a point near the end of the film where I actually felt quite ill, and had to close my eyes for a few seconds and take a deep breath. From the reactions of the audience I wasn't the only one. It's a BBFC 15 certificate, and I'm not surprised, it's pretty strong stuff.

Intrestingly, the American title, 'Pan's Labyrinth', was used in the UK, rather than the original 'El Laberinto del Fauno'. We tend to get either the original foreign title, or an accurate English translation, or both.

About one-third of the films I watch are subtitled, so this isn't unusual for me. I have to say that I prefer it when the language is simple enough that I can understand it without having to read the subtitles, but my Spanish is nowhere near good enough for that. Maybe I need another trip to New Jersey, I pick up a little whenever I'm there.

I've seen several French films recently where I managed to understand large parts of them without needing the subtitles:

'Innocence', one of the strangest films I've ever seen, though I found it neither erotic nor pornographic, as some have claimed it to be. I could understand most of this.

'Angel A', or was it 'AngelA'? and 'La Tourneuse de pages', where I could understand about half the film without the subtitles. I also managed to remember enough Russian to understand quite a lot of 'Everything is Illuminated'. I've always found learning languages very difficult, but I find that just picking them up by hearing them, Spanish in New Jersey, Russian in Russia and Brooklyn etc. is actually easier than trying to learn them in a formal way. Perhaps a good reason to watch more foreign films.
 

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Posted by John Koutsoumis (Member # 1855) on 01-25-2007, 07:38 PM:
 
Did this really have to be so violent. I am glad though that it's something different and it's way better and far superior than what Hollywood is currently churning out.
I just wish it had more of the fantasy elements in the story.

Ivana Baquero who play's the young Ofelia and the Pan character (played by Doug Jones) is what made the film worthwhile.

4 out 5 for the Fantasy scenes. 2 out of 5 overall.
 

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Posted by Jeremy Jorgenson (Member # 2989) on 01-26-2007, 07:33 AM:
 

 

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Posted by Frank Dubrois (Member # 3042) on 01-27-2007, 12:57 AM:
 
Were the special effects good? I couldn't tell because I was READING THE MOVIE!!! GOD I hate subtitles....
 

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Posted by John Koutsoumis (Member # 1855) on 01-28-2007, 10:38 PM:
 
Frank, you must be a slow reader. Yes the special effects are very good (were you being sarcastic?).

The subtitles are really basic. Better that than bad English dubbing.
 

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Posted by Bruce McGee (Member # 131) on 01-29-2007, 07:39 PM:
 
When we pre-screened this title, we found out that our R7 had no subtitles! We had a replacement reel on the print with 15 minutes to spare before its first show.

It sold out several times, and is now in our largest house in Dolby!

We've given a few passes to patrons that dont want to read their films, too, but its only been a very few.
 

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Posted by Kelly Arciniaco (Member # 4048) on 01-30-2007, 01:25 PM:
 
This was a limited release, right? Does anyone know if they're expanding it? Probably not since it's a foreign movie. Some of my friends wanted to know where it was playing, but I have no idea.
 

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Posted by Mike Schindler (Member # 1309) on 01-30-2007, 02:04 PM:
 
Am I the only person who didn't like this movie? The fantasy stuff was okay, but few and far between. The reality stuff was boring. I couldn't care less about fairy tales. And I hated how the movie looked. HATED!

Del Toro is generally awesome. BLADE II kicks a whole lot of ass. But PAN'S LABYRINTH disappointed me quite a bit.
 

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Posted by Jeremy Jorgenson (Member # 2989) on 02-02-2007, 05:24 PM:
 

quote: John Koutsoumis

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The subtitles are really basic. Better that than bad English dubbing.

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quote: Stephen Furley

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but my Spanish is nowhere near good enough for that. Maybe I need another trip to New Jersey

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40's "Spain" Spanish v. modern "Jersey" Spanish ... you might have had to have read the subtitles anyway.

quote: Kelly Arciniaco

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Does anyone know if they're expanding it?

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quote: Mark Lensenmayer

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Frank, the violence is necessary and important in this film. It is not overdone or gratuitous.

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quote: Frank Angel

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So how does it stack up against the benchmark of gratuitous violence, THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST? Or as we can now quantify it, thanks to Mr. Gibson, the SPM reading (scourges per minute)?

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There's far less violence than in 'The Passion of the Christ', but it's not a simple matter of quantity; you can't measure violence with a metre rule, or a pair of scales, or even a stopwatch. It's also a question of the 'quality' of the violence, if I can use such a term. The violence was very realistic, and while brief was something of a 'short sharp shock', when it came. Also, the juxtaposition of the fantasy of the fairy-tale scenes with the very real violence of the Fascists, and their opponents, adds to the shock of the violence when it comes.

There may well be more violence in a typical Hollywood action film, but it would be in an unrealistic situation for most people. As a rather extreme example, there can be a lot of violence in a 'Tom and Jerry' cartoon, but it's not at all shocking, it's comical; not all violence is created equal. I do think that parts of 'Pan's Labyrinth' were quite shocking, and I'm not that easily shocked.

The scenes of the crucifixion in 'The Passion of the Christ' may have been an accurate representation of what a crucifixion would have been like, I don't actually know since, thankfully, I've never seen a real one, but for most people today such a thing would be so far removed from the experience of their everyday lives that it wouldn't actually seem realistic. I just found the whole thing rather unpleasant, but not really shocking. I think it would have been a better film with much of this removed.

Frank, it's a good film, do see it. There are only brief scenes of real violence; just close your eyes for a few seconds if you find it's too much for you.

Edit:

Iv'e just checked tonight's BAFTA results; it's won two awards, for 'Best film not in the English language' and 'Costume design'. Slightly disappointing, it received about eight nominations, and I thought it might have done better.

[ 02-11-2007, 03:58 PM: Message edited by: Stephen Furley ]
 

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Posted by Paul Burt (Member # 3743) on 02-13-2007, 03:22 PM:
 
Finally saw this last night. A brilliant film, imho. Del Toro is a true visionary, and is one of the few directors able to translate his ideas clearly to the screen (unlike, say, The Fountain's director). The violence is shocking, but in the context of the story, fully necessary. What amazes me is the seamless integration of the fantasy elements with the external Spanish civil War story.
Technically, it was excellent. Folks in the audience were commenting on the extraordinary sound mix.
 

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Posted by Sam Graham (Member # 2889) on 03-17-2007, 04:54 PM:
 
CINEMA: AMC Oak View 24, Omaha, NE
AUDITORIUM: 10
PRESENTATION: 35mm/Mystery Meat Digital
PRESENTATION PROBLEMS: None
RATING: One and one half star (out of four)

It's a boring war movie with a ridiculous fairy tale subplot and a big gross toad, who gets about sixty seconds of screen time.

The half star was for the toad.

It was a nice sound mix, though.
 

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