An Amateur Film Critique of Pan's Labyrinth

Plot Summary

The film centers around a young girl named Ofelia who’s considered to be the princess of the underworld. Her main objective is to complete the three tasks given to her by a Faun. Those three tasks will serve as a test of character and ritual initiation to prove that a) she has not become mortal and b) she may be worthy and part of the underworld with her parents. The first task is to repossess a key from a toad inside an ancient fig tree. The second task is to bring back the dagger [from the Pale Man] to the Faun. The third task is to bring her baby brother to the labyrinth at night during the full moon. In the process of finishing these tasks, Ofelia deals with three things: 1) reality of mortality, 2) the absurdity of war, and 3) the meaning of self-sacrifice.

Film Analysis

Several images posed as symbolisms that needed to be tackled in a psychological and political perspective, those being: placing the eye back into its socket (totem) and the magical insect/fairy coming out, the connection between the ancient fig tree and Ofelia’s mother, the toad inside the ancient fig tree and Captain Vidal, the Pale Man and the consuming aspect of Captain Vidal’s nature, Captain Vidal and his men vs. the Rebels, Franco regime distributing the “daily bread of the community” as Christian symbolism, the representation of Captain Vidal and the Faun in terms of good and evil, and the tasks as a form of initiation.

To begin with, when Ofelia placed the missing left eye into the socket of the totem, a magical insect/fairy came out and that represented the beginning of Ofelia’s quest; that she had eyes that could see the “invisible world” she is about to immerse herself in. Secondly, the connection of the ancient fig tree and the mother is that it represented her womb-- that just like the tree being home to many creatures, she is home to Ofelia. In connection to this, Captain Vidal is represented by the toad because it simply ruins the ancient fig tree-- just like how Captain Vidal ruins Ofelia’s mother by only using her as a carrier of his child and for nothing else. Thirdly, the Pale Man represented Captain Vidal’s greedy appetite because as shown in certain scenes, they both had bountiful feasts and consumed vigorously while the rest only had small portions and in the scene of the Pale Man’s feast, Ofelia was not even allowed to eat a piece of food. Fourthly, Captain Vidal and his men are symbols of fascism (radical authoritarian nationalism, dictatorial power, and suppression). On the other hand, the rebels represented resistance, obviously, their mere existence to resist. This can be connected to the current situation of the Philippines under Duterte’s regime; he is dictatorial and has shown violence to those resisting to his power. We, the Filipinos, have no choice but to follow his command but there are still rebels, the activists in our country, who still pursue to reclaim justice. Fifthly, the Franco regime depicted a false-God image by distributing bread just like how the “daily bread” was distributed in the catholic community by their saviour, Jesus Christ. Sixthly, ironically, the Faun is shown in a light of darkness and Captain Vidal as the good guy, but how their character really is tells a different story. The Faun is the messenger, or rather the one who acts as the spiritual guide of Ofelia. On the other hand, Captain Vidal represents the authoritarian patriarchal classic machismo with the harsh violence and manly figure that oppresses carelessly. Lastly, the tasks served as an initiation, that accomplishing those will require a strong will, sacrifice, and rebirth to prove herself that she is worthy of reuniting with her family in the underworld.

Personal Reflection, Review (4/5)

I’d give Pan’s Labyrinth a 4/5 mainly because it had a captivating storyline, well-educated mythological background, and a creative fantasy world. On the other hand, there were some things I still wanted more of, such as a better background, or rather equal grounds, of showing the political light of the story as well. The fantasy world was definitely the catching part of the story, and the main takeaway is my psychological viewpoint that Ofelia had moved into this fantasy world to disassociate herself with the unbearable real world. I would relate to this movie, but not so radically as to removing myself from my current situation and perhaps losing my mind into another. Additionally, I liked the graphics, the actors, and the representations of each symbols in the film.

References

(2013, March 24). Retrieved April 07, 2018, from http://popupchinese.com/pans-labyrinth.html

Perschon, M. (2015, March 24). Embracing the Darkness, Sorrow, and Brutality of Pan's Labyrinth. Retrieved April 07, 2018, from https://www.tor.com/2011/05/25/the-darkness-of-pans-labyrinth/

VC. (2017, November 24). Retrieved April 07, 2018, from https://vigilantcitizen.com/moviesandtv/the-esoteric-interpretation-of-pans-labyrinth/