In post-civil war Spain, Ofelia and her pregnant mother travel to the mountain estate/base camp of Captain Vidal, a sadistic Falange military man tasked with crushing the Spanish Maquis fighting in the hillsides. Though Vidal has wed Ofelia’s mother, he only shows interest in his unborn son and is cold to his wife and Ofelia. Amidst this conflict, Ofelia discovers an ancient stone labyrinth beside the estate. Upon entering it, she meets a mysterious Faun who informs her that she is a princess reincarnate and must complete three task to reunite with her kingdom. Ofelia manages these fantasy-like tasks while the horrors of the outside world creep closer to her, ending in a showdown with her, her new brother, the psychopathic Captain, and a unit of liberating Maquis.
There’s no way that I conveyed a plot so darkly fantastical with any sense of justice. The film is a unique fairy tale and the backdrop of post-civil war Spain was an unexpected 20th century twist. In the fantasy world, the characters were whimsical or twisted and had Guillermo del Toro’s fingerprints all over them. Among humans, the performances were endearing and heartbreaking. The violence, in what could have otherwise played as a kids movie, was jarringly brutal. Technically, the CGI has aged fantastically due to its careful, measured use and the heavy-lifting of practical effects. But my favorite detail was the camera’s watchful eye drifting across scenes and through the trees. I loved it all.
Through a fantasy, this film brought to life a period of human history I knew little about and inspired me to dig deeper. I know Ofelia’s three trials play as metaphors, like any good allegory, but I feel ill equipped to truly understand in what way. But this film left me thinking, and thinking, and thinking—combined with all of the features that I loved about it, that’s the best gift a film could give me.