Pan's Labyrinth

[Daniel E.]

And here I though it had the Best Foreign Language Film of the Year award in the bag. >_< !!

[NoSanninWa]

I also assumed that, simply because it was the only film in the category that managed to be nominated for other Oscars. I suppose though, that might have been a handicap. People who are fans of foreign language films are protective of the sanctity of their ghetto and voted against Pan's Labyrinth because they were jealous of its success.

[Daniel E.]

Well, at least it won some awards like you just mentioned.

Most of my other tries at guessing the winners also failed bad.

Thank god I am not into gambling.

[hipeach]

great movie. Only thing is that her dad is her step-father, not blood-related, which I think is a minus in the setting.

[NoSanninWa]

I'm curious why you think it is a minus.

[cheyannew]

Originally Posted by NoSanninWa

I'm curious why you think it is a minus.

Agreed; since in the fairy-tales, there's always an evil stepmother; why not an evil stepfather?

[mantidor]

Damn, we get these movies always so late! T_T, I finally saw it this week and I loved every minute of it, and I still cannot get it out of my head, it gives so many room for diferent interpretation,

Spoiler:

I don't think the mandrake plant being burned broke the ambiguity, the mother was in a very delicate state and it can easily be blamed that her condition got worst due to the stress she felt in that moment, with that argument she had with her daughter and the captain.

I really want to believe it all was real, because the other possibility is just so depressing but I can't be sure about it... argh, thats what I hate (love) about the film.

It was simply amazing, and very melancholic, and it was a great change at least for once to see a fantasy movie in my native language, even if it was with a Spain accent, sometimes I feel so angry at people disregarding this movie because its subtitled, I've seen subtitled movies all my life! and they complain about just one!?

[NoSanninWa]

It isn't that the mandrake was burned that really broke the ambiguity. It is that she found the mandrake at all. That was given to her by the faun and I find it unlikely that the girl could have dug up her own mandrake root.

[JaneSame]

I'm going to see this movie next week, possibly Sunday night, I HOPE.

[raphaël]

I saw it quite a while ago, when it went out here in France, and I did like it very much. My friends thought the girl's acting was ridiculously poor, and I have to admit they may be right, though the character isn't meant to be very funny, charismatic or expressive. Some special effects disappointed me a bit, but all in all, the art was pretty good. I loved the surprising ending ( Yup, i had forgotten the beginning) and the dark morale of the story.
So, everyone watch it if you didn't already.
JaneSame, you'll tell me about it.

[Automated Species]

Originally Posted by NoSanninWa

Unfortunately the wall between fantasy and reality was broken once in the movie. That revealed the truth of the fantasy. (I say unfortunately because I would prefer for it to stay unknowable.)

Both Captain Vidal and Mercedes saw the mandrake root. If the faun did not give the root to her, I cannot imagine how she would get such a thing. Therefore it must have been real. Also, it might have been coincidence, but right after Mercedes threw the root into the fire breaking the spell, her health failed.

Perhaps it was all just an illusion created from a little girl without much companions, except for the pragnent mother who is poorly ill and the yet to be born little brother from some sort of mental disorders, but that's my own perception, so don't mind me.

I thought everything was real at first, but the ending gave me a little doubt (there were also a few clues during the movie that gave me a little doubt that she was just in an illusive world). Though, It was pretty awkward to see that her dead mother was the Queen and her unknown father was the Ruler of the underworld.