I don't "get" Pan's Labrynth...

Bes said:
Why did it win so many Oscars? I really fail to see what was so great about it?
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I'm with you on this one. However, I will probably be the ONLY one in this thread who agrees with you.

When me and my gf went to see it we both thought it was overhyped and misguided. It's a good film and well done in places, but nothing more.
 
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To me, it seemed like it was all - sort of - game over a bit early..... You know- she ate the fruit and 'failed' in her mission, and then it kind of petered out from there really. As for the ending... what a massive let-down.
 
Bes said:
As for the ending... what a massive let-down.
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I thought the ending was brilliant, but then again i'm a sucker for sad endings. I think the best bit about it is that you can decide for yourself whether or not the whole thing was in her head (i.e. just trying to escape the horrible world she was in) or whether it really happened or not.

I think it was a touch over-hyped, but if you sit back there really is no way you can fault it. It's just personal preference.

Oh, it only won 3 Oscars (not bad, i suppose), but the only 'major' one was for cinematography. Which i'd agree with, but i cant remember what it was up against.
 
It's one of the films I really liked but couldn't really tell you why. I suppose I'd describe it as spellbinding - it had excellent sense of place and really held my attention.
 
Scam said:
I thought the ending was brilliant, but then again i'm a sucker for sad endings. I think the best bit about it is that you can decide for yourself whether or not the whole thing was in her head (i.e. just trying to escape the horrible world she was in) or whether it really happened or not.
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Hooray! I was alone in the last thread about the ending being open to interpretation.
 
IIRC the film basically sucks you into the mind of a little girl with an over-active imagination - and shows that amidst troubled times, a child's innocence can be both beautiful and frightening - as means of detaching from harsh reality.

I don't really agree with the ending being "open to interpretation", I personally feel that the movie quite explicitly says "it was all her imagination" because I think that's the point - it's how she "escaped". I guess you could stick you fingers in your ears and say "lalala, it was real, it was real" though. (I might be wrong, it's been a while since I saw it...)

I do vividly remember that bloody eye-hand thing though - scared me to death :p
 
Well that's the point. You dont know if it is set in a 'real' world, or a fantasy world (where those sorts of things happen). :)
 
Masterdog said:
It's one of the films I really liked but couldn't really tell you why. I suppose I'd describe it as spellbinding - it had excellent sense of place and really held my attention.
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Feel exactly the same. :)

The film just 'worked' for me.
The subtitles are done really well also imo - I get pulled in I don't even realise.
 
I was shocked when the film finished, because I hadn't expected to enjoy a close captioned film.

I thought it was awesome :)
 
Scam said:
I think the best bit about it is that you can decide for yourself whether or not the whole thing was in her head
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I personally don't believe that is how the ending was intended. I believe it was intended as a sad ending, and the scene with her completing her 'quest' was very blatantly mocking people who wanted, or expected, a happy ending.

To clarify...

- The whole fantsay was merely psycological 'escapism'.

- The ending was basically saying "you can kid yourself into believing it was a happy ending if you really want to, but that just isn't how life works..."


Overall an excellent film.
 
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Werent there a few points in the film that supported the happy ending?? one being something to do with the chalk(its been a while since i watched it) and the other the hedge at the end she goes through yet when the man persuing her tries to go the same way its a dead end.
 
I thought it was excellent. I love the fact everyone I know who's seen it expected some epic fantasy tale but got a dark, graphic movie instead.

Top film, and I can't wait for del toro to get finished with Hell Boy 2 and do something less mainstream again :)
 
Deiwos said:
I thought it was excellent. I love the fact everyone I know who's seen it expected some epic fantasy tale but got a dark, graphic movie instead.

Top film, and I can't wait for del toro to get finished with Hell Boy 2 and do something less mainstream again :)
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He's rumored to be doing The Hobbit, which definitely ticks the epic fantasy and mainstream boxes.

On topic I thought Pan's Labyrinth was pretty good, but I definitely subscribe to the open interpretation feeling. Personally I thought it was all "real" and she was the incarnation of the princess.
 
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Never watched this as i am not a fan of sub films, perfer to hear english spoken than read words on the screen all the way through the film, i know its lame but there ya go.

Would love to watch it if it ever was converted to english tho.
 
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