LSC Event Descriptions

May 12 & 13, 2007

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Rated R
112 minutes

 El Laberinto del Fauno (Pan's Labyrinth) (2006)
May 12, 2007 at 7:00 and 10:00 pm in 26-100
May 13, 2007 at 10:00 pm in 26-100

One of the horrific manifestations of the dark side of human nature is the capacity to wage war, and nothing is more perverse or destructive than civil war - it separates friends and neighbours, and sets brother against brother. The 1936 civil war that led to Franco's nearly forty-year dictatorship was a terrible time in Spain's history. Guillermo del Toro's 2001 film The Devil's Backbone was a gothic ghost story infused with the nightmare of that war. His latest film, Pan's Labyrinth, revisits the war's aftermath, once again crossing historical drama with genre and bringing the horrors of Spain's fascist regime to life. It's a thriller with elements of the fantastic and classic del Toro gore.

The year is 1944. Young Ofélia (Ivana Baquero) is forced to move into her stepfather's home, now that her mother, Carmen (Ariadna Gil), is about to give birth. She hates her new life and her new father, the tyrannical Captain Vidal (an incredibly creepy performance by Sergi López). He is intent on snuffing out the brave maquis, rebel forces who, despite all odds, refuse to allow their spirits to be crushed by the fascists. Ofélia finds an ally in Mercedes (Maribel Verdú), Vidal's servant, who is secretly helping the rebels. She also discovers a labyrinth near the house and meets its grotesquely fawnlike keeper, Pan (Doug Jones), who gives her three dangerous tasks to complete.

Sponsored by MISTI (MIT Mexico). English subtitles.

With great ingenuity, an incredible sense of timing and an ability to connect the real and the imaginary with his themes and characters, del Toro is able to weave seamlessly between reality and fantasy, giving the story a fluidity that maintains its suspense throughout. Pan's Labyrinth is a testament to the power of the imagination, a force Franco's fascists did everything in their power to eradicate. [www.torontointernationalfilmfestival.ca]

Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth brilliantly melds the realms of fairy tale and brutal 20th-century history. Beautiful, horrible and deeply affecting, it's the 21st century's first film masterpiece.
      -- John Wirt, The Advocate. Read this review.

2006 Academy Award Nominations: Achievement in Art Direction (WIN!), Achievement in Cinematography (WIN!), Best Foreign Language Film of the Year, Achievement in Makeup (WIN!), Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score), Original Screenplay

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