Review: Pan's Labyrinth

I watch movies. A lot. Little on television excites me, except for FRINGE. Ergo, I forsake commercials and go for dvds. My friends all suggested this gem and the art direction alone was enough to hold my attention. I was forewarned of the violence and aptly averted my eyes here and there, though after watching a year and a half of Fringe, I was a bit toughened up. The layers are beautiful and the end, tragically beautiful, like a sad wandering Radiohead song that ends on a hidden high note. The lullaby, the labyrinth, the chalk door, the moss covered statues in the forest...gorgeous. At some points I recalled Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away, especially during the frog sequence and the stone faces. Ever since childhood I've been drawn to media in which children are forced to make adult decisions and fend for themselves. Not that I was forced to do that as a child or anything! Perhaps it's simply because I was an only child and can identify with their independence. At any rate this is a must see.