A Must See Film!

It was two weeks ago, on one of the coldest winter nights in New York City; I stumbled upon this small movie theater called The Sunshine. The name of the theater appealed to me (because of course it was so cold) and I entered. I had no idea that the movie I was about to watch would become one of my favorite movies of all time. The experience of the feature proved to me that sometimes when you do things that are spontaneous, the outcome is much sweeter.

The movie was called Pan’s Labyrinth, created by Guillermo del Toro. The emotions I experienced throughout the film were unlike anything I had felt before. For the first time, I truly felt for the characters in the film as if they were real. Despite the language barrier (the film was in Spanish with English subtitles) and the little knowledge I had of the time period (1944, Spanish Civil War) the main character, Ophelia’s eyes became mine and her journey, my own.

Pan’s Labyrinth encapsulated the life of Ophelia, whose imagination took precedence over the reality she was faced with. Despite the loss of a mother and abuse of an evil stepfather, she was faced with the decision of a lifetime, the decision between the life of a mortal and immortal.

I don’t want to ruin the ending, so I will only say this much. Think of an Alice in Wonderland made for adults, except this time what the audience expects to happen, I promise will not. The film itself can be at times disturbing but the message it sends out to its viewers is one you best not miss.