Search - Pan's Labyrinth on DVD

George K. from COLCHESTER, CT
Reviewed on 4/28/2013...

Lovely movie about a hideous time in the world. A young girl's fantasies free her from the ugliest reality and make her heartbreaking end a little less painful, but I still have tears in my eyes every time I watch the movie.

Heather T. (htinsley) from ANDALUSIA, AL
Reviewed on 11/17/2010...

I love this movie. Sorry I will never repost it!

0 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.

Melissa H.
Reviewed on 9/18/2010...

This is a wonderful movie; however, the ending left me depressed. It was so upsetting I wish I had never seen it.

2 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.

Brad S. (Snibot) from DALLAS, TX
Reviewed on 1/12/2010...

I had a surprise when I discovered that the movie was in Spanish, but much like "Iron Monkey" this movie delivers. The movie is in Spanish because it is in Spain ... makes sense, and it helps move the story along, it also adds to some dramatic points, when you start to think, maybe this isn't so possible, the realism pulls you back in.

Captain Vidal played by Sergio Lopez is an amazing villain. You know those movies where you sometimes start rooting for the bad guy? This isn't one of them. Pretty much from his first scene, you want this guy to get it. He is the most horrible kind of movie villain, he is the one that is only so possible, and probably was based off a real person (maybe even toned down a little.)

Ofelia played by Ivana Baquero is a magnificent heroine, she is strong, independent, and a little foolish but hey she's a little girl. There is a reason why she won a Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Young Actor.

Well written, well acted, well conceived. This picture won an Oscar for Best Art in Direction - the fantasy scenes had a very real feel to it, I was very impressed. Another Oscar for Best Achievement in Cinematography - the whole movie was amazing, all of the scenery felt like location, colors were crisp. Another Oscar for Best Achievement in Makeup ... I'm a guy, I don't notice makeup.

I don't throw out a lot of recommendations this movie is one of them, if you avoid movies because they are subtitled, you are doing yourself a disservice. Many fantastic movies were done in foreign languages, and dub overs loose so much of the original work. I don't find myself agreeing with a whole lot of the Oscar movie wins, but this one was SPOT ON! Amazing and fantastic, watch it.

4 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.

Blu-Ray Technical Specs

Andrew J. Beauto | Tucson, AZ | 07/21/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Pan's Labyrinth [Blu-ray]

Feature film Blu-Ray technical specifications:

Video: 1080p, 1.85:1
Audio: Spanish dts-HD Master Audio 7.1

I'm hopeful that Amazon's technical specifications listings will become more useful.
"

The Violence Is Necessary

OddStatistic | 07/13/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Fairy tales are violent. Labyrinths are always dangerous places. Many fairy tales have been toned down for kids, but in their original forms, Violent. Getting to the movie, the violence has to be there. Basically, I think it rips the viewer back and forth between the "I'm really a princess!" fantasy world the little girl dreams of and the harsh world the little girl lives in just as the little girl is throw back and forth between that fantasy world and the world in which the country is at war, her father beloved father is dead, her mother is sick, her baby brother is in jeopardy, she's being told to call some other man father, her stepfather is a murderous jerk, and her new best friend (as she has had to leave all of her old friends in the city to move to the country) is a spy who could be discovered and killed at any moment. While viewers feel sympathy for the little girl's situation given all of that, the violence on screen creates a situation for the viewer. More empathy. The viewer (at least those with weaker stomachs) wants to get away from it as much as the little girl and hopes she, at least, succeeds, becomes the princess, finds her "real" father (alive and well), her mother (alive and well), etc etc. Why the ending? As multiple characters in the film say, there is no magic. Fairy tales aren't real. Not for you, me, or anybody else. No other ending would work. For what appears to be it's purpose, the movie had to be dark and could have been darker without fault. In passing, would like to comment on the fact that Captain seems to believe in his own version of a fairy tale, the great man's death. In fact most characters seem to have some "fairy tale" in mind. Final note: those complaining because they thought this was a kid's movie, check the rating on the DVD, the movie posters, the internet, the theater marquee,.... That's not, and never was, a G. Don't blame anyone buy yourself for your choice not to take the time to read one letter prominently placed on the advertising materials before tossing your kids in front of the television and going off to do the laundry or whatever. There's no excuse for being surprised by the fact that this movie isn't for kids."