Pan's Labyrinth

Pan’s Labyrinth was a film produced by Guillermo del Toro set against the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s and 1940s. Del Toro uses magnificent images and creative filming to produce a fantastic film that draws the viewer in and does not allow them out. He uses such compositional modes as mise en scène and cinematography to portray the message he is trying to get across. He also used Ofelia’s fantasy acts and objects in her wonderland to portray what is taking place in the real world.

Guillermo del Toro sets the film within the Spanish Civil War and does not tame any of the gruesome executions or torture that occurred. An example was when Captain Vidal stabbed and shot the men who were hunting rabbits because he thought they were part of the guerillas. Furthermore, del Toro puts the audience into the war with the culture, history, and location that is portrayed. Smith and Edwards both comment on this in their overviews of Pan’s Labyrinth. Smith states it like this, “Eluding nativism (shooting “in exile”), he also avoids facile multiculturalism, engaging deeply with the culture, history, and cinema of his host country” (4). Edwards says something very similar when he says, “This fecund, earthy and maternal underland is juxtaposed with scenes in the 'real' world of fascist Spain in 1944, with their steely military colours and sharp cold lines and shapes” (142). Edwards’ description not only ties the film to the time period, but also to the underworld that Ofelia is part of.

Captain Vidal

Guillermo del Toro shows cinematography in his film making that is fantastic. Take for example, a description that Smith gives in his review when he says, “In a single, extraordinary shot del Toro tilts down to inside the mother’s womb, where we see a golden fetus mutely listening, and pans right to the fantastic blossom atop a mountain of thorns” (6).

This depicts one of the many great camera shots throughout the film. Ofelia, at the time, is telling a story to her unborn brother and the camera shot enables the audience to view the unborn fetus dreaming the story as it is told. As a viewer, I also felt like the captain was portrayed as the most important person through the use of shooting him with a low camera angle that would pan up to his face.

The compositional mode of mise en scène that del Toro uses is phenomenal in my opinion. The characters in the wonderland are so realistic, but at the same time you understand that they are fairy-type creatures. An example of this that I can think of is the faun and the gruesome creature with the eyes in his hands. In addition, the costumes used on the real characters put the audience into the time period that allows for belief of everything that takes place.

Gruesome creature

I found the use of symbolism between the wonderland and reality to be intriguing. I did not catch all of these until reading Smith and Edward’s accounts of the film. An example would be Ofelia seeing red cover the page of her book and then turning to see her mother bleeding due to birth complications. Another example that Edwards mentioned was “from the tortured rebel's split hand to the Captain's split face” (143). A third example that is symbolic is the two knives that Ofelia and Mercedes use to get to freedom rather than experiencing death.