Pan’s Labyrinth
I found the film Pans Labyrinth to be very interesting. I took four years of Spanish, so I am familiar with Spanish history. I enjoyed how del Toro combined fantasy world and reality. He took two extremes and made them work together. While watching the film, I picked up on some foreshadowing. The two biggest points of foreshadowing for me were how Mercedes told Ofelia that her mother always told her to be weary of fauns and how Mercedes always rolled her knife in her apron.
When I picked up on those two things, I knew to keep them in mind of the film continued. As the movie progresses, it is evident how Ofelia’s relationship with the faun changes. At first she is not afraid of him and he is nice to her. As it progresses, Ofelia is afraid of him and appears uncomfortable around him. As I was watching the film, I became weary of Ofelia being around him. He also becomes short and abrupt with Ofelia. However, at the end of the film, we learn the Faun was acting this way in order for Ofelia to complete all three tasks, especially the third.
Mercedes used the knife in her apron to cut the rope off of her hands, and the injure Captain Vidal. She stabbed him a few times and sliced his check. In the article “Pan’s Labyrinth
(El laberinto del fauno)” by Smith he states “In its stress on a world of women (of mothers,
daughters, and housekeepers) wholly separate from that of men, Pan’s Labyrinth is clearly commenting on gender relations” (3). Throughout the film, Mercedes is aiding the Guerillas, and Captain Vidal never sus
I believe the film used Mise en scene well. The setting, props, design, and colors really went well with the different scenes. The fantasy world was colorful compared to the dark colors of reality. The setting of a mill (where the Captain lived) matched the darkness of his personality and character. In the article “Alice’s Little Sister: Exploring Pan’s Labyrinth” by Edwards, he states
The visual impact of the fantasy world is Freudian in its gendering - from the downward wipe through the mother Carmen's (Ariadna Gil) swollen belly into the fairytale landscape, the imagery is continually organic and uterine, with warm rich colours, earthy cavernous spaces and the recurring curved feminine shapes reminiscent of the Faun's horns. (2)
I did find it ironic that Carmen scolds Ofelia for reading and believing in fairy tales, but yet she asks Ofelia to tell her brother one of her stories. It is in this story that we are taken to the rich land of color. At the end of the movie when Ofelia is reunited with her parents in her kingdom, the color and setting is outstanding. It allows the viewer to feel comfortable with her death knowing that she is now in such a glorious place.
Ofelia is brought back to her kingdom. Her costume changed dramatically as well. She went from dark rugged clothes, to elegant and bright.
I agree with your thought about the foreshadowing. It was very evident when del Toro showed Mercedes hiding her knife in her apron twice during the movie that it would play some importance.I also agree with your thoughts about color, prop, and setting use. You could tell the difference between the real world and the fantasy world which made it very easy to follow along with the movie.
ReplyDeleteThe scenes where we watch Mercedes roll her knife up into her apron are always some of my favorites. It gives the viewer this feeling of great importance, we know that it is going to come into play in the plot. Also, the changing emotions of the Faun always give me a weary feelings. The first time I saw this movie, I was so afraid that the Faun would turn out to be lying about the kingdom.
ReplyDeleteThere may be more to say about femininity and Vidal's treatment of Ofelia and especially Carmen. The quotes you pulled from Smith and Edwards work well with what you discuss. Also, another direction would be to develop more about Mercedes character and how her clothes and lullaby symbolize her situation, etc. and how that contrasts with her strong character.
ReplyDeleteGood post overall, but you need more visual support and captions with your images. Furthermore, I think you missed the day we made individual blogs and your post needs to be on your own blog. Let me know when you have it up.