El Laberinto del fauno (2006) ****

Guillermo del Toro's international hit of 2006, nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards, is the surprisingly adult story of a young child's retreat into a world of fantasy to combat the harsh reality of her new living conditions. Ofelia (a truly wonderful Ivana Baquero) and her mother, Carmen (Ariadna Gil), are en route to a new life with Carmen's new husband, Captain Vidal (Sergi López), who has been placed in charged of a unit of the Spanish army tasked with finding and eliminating anti-Franco guerrilla resistance fighters hiding in the surrounding area. A stark contrast to the world of wonder that Ofelia finds herself increasingly drawn towards as she learns what a truly despicable man her mother has married and her only avenue for happiness as she is ripped away from everything she has ever loved to be brought to the last place on earth a child belongs. She has transported herself from a world where no one care about her existence to one where she is the long absent princess of the underworld whose father is waiting for her return to his kingdom. It's not difficult to see how alluring such a life can be given her current circumstances.

It's never definitely stated whether or not the fantasy world that is calling out to Ofelia is not just her imagination. Only she can see the fairy that constantly calls her to the labyrinth which is the gateway to the underworld. Twice when Pan (Doug Jones, who always excels in these types of roles) is standing right in front of her, he cannot be seen by anyone else who enters the same room. There's also strong evidence that the entire world is simply constructed based on her fears and concerns of her new life. She immediately starts to fantasize en route to the base where Captain Vidal is stationed, at the same time her mother is experiencing pain due to her pregnancy. The world she envisions is also a dark and terrifying world in and of itself. It's populated by horrifying creatures that serve as a visual metaphor for the ugliness lying beneath the surface of Captain Vidal's seemingly calm and civil demeanor. It's quite possible Ofelia has retreated into her mind as she is unable to deal with the real life pains and torments following the death of her father and her mother's new marriage. Even the princess' parents are images of Ofelia's own earthly ones and since her final arrival at the last moments of the film are suspect as a hallucination, but it is strongly hoped that Ofelia can find happiness in this new life that she couldn't find in her old one.

The film is a wondrous mixture of the unique and original creature designs and the soulful human stories that never get lost in the whimsy of bringing del Toro's magnificent imagination to the screen. His love for the unusually beautiful never gets in the way of the emotional connections of the characters, a fact he is well known for in his films. This film continues in that tradition remarkably with Fauno an excellent addition to the pantheon of characters that have been developed in his artistic mind. The truly stunning design works hand in hand seamlessly with Doug Jones' portrayal who always looks more comfortable under heavy prosthetics rather than just himself. Jones is the perfect actor for del Toro as his performance never suffers despite the burdensome make-up effects and actually enhances the awe-inspiring look of the creatures. Jones also appears as the terrifying Pale Man, illustrating just how far a range he has in portraying the two vastly different characters, one of whom does not even speak. The Pale Man is also evidence of the flip side to del Toro's vivid imagination, the truly horrifying beings that dwell in the darkness, quite literally the stuff nightmares are made of.

With regards to the terrors usually inherent in del Toro's films, this one is punctuated with quite a few scenes of shocking and brutal violence. While never excessive, it certainly highlights the dark times in which the narrative is taking place. Del Toro never shies away from the ugly side of human nature, and while this may be his most violent film of a realistic nature, it largely serves to fuel the desire for Ofelia to escape such dire circumstances. Captain Vidal is a cruel and sadistic man of the worst kind, whose only joy out of life comes from his inflicting pain on others. He is responsible for many of the deaths in the film and the character has been painted with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. While this may seem one dimensional, he is established as the personification of evil that is the main cause for many of the atrocities that occur. This allows the audience to feel enormous satisfaction when he does get his just deserts especially since right before his own demise he is hurt in the one place that he cares about. He dies knowing that his worst fear will come to fruition and it certainly makes up for the pain that he has caused throughout the film.

The film is not all gloom and doom, as the child-like wonder Ofelia has for the world she has discovered provides some much-needed brights spots in the story. Her relationship with Fauno is a complex one, since he does not always appear as trustworthy as she may want. There is a comforting nature about him however as he is made up of the elements of the earth, signifying the underworld that is calling Ofelia home. He even helps with Carmen's pain because he sees it distresses Ofelia to be so worried about her mother's condition. The other rewarding relationship is between Ofelia and Mercedes (Maribel Verdú), the only one in the camp to show her any kindness and the one bright spot in her new life. Mercedes serves as a substitute mother figure, as Carmen becomes bed-ridden and unable to spend time with her daughter, and has a genuine affection for Ofelia proven when she is willing to kill to protect her. It's elements such as these that always elevate del Toro's work above other fantasy films. They are content to allow the audience to wallow in the wonder and majesty of the new and usual lands, however del Toro always brings it back to reality with the human stories because those are the aspects of the film that will continue to resonate with the audience long after the awe has begun to fade.

Favorite moment: After exposure and execution of her partner, Captain Vidal then discovers that Mercedes is also working for the revolutionaries and prepares to torture her for information. Not having to pay for any of his actions up to this point, it was reassuring and a relief to see Mercedes get the upper hand against Captain Vidal and inflict some torture of her own on the man who could not deserve it more. While a bit graphic, Vidal is forced to pay for his sins and rather than kill him, Mercedes is willing to allow him to live, albeit scarred for life as constant reminder of how close the revolutionaries were able to come to his own private kingdom.