In Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, a young girl named Ofelia moves to the country to live with her cruel stepfather in the midst of the Spanish Civil War. In the woods around her new home, she discovers an ancient labyrinth inhabited by strange creatures, and she learns that she is the reincarnated Princess of the Underworld. She must complete three tasks in order to take the throne, and all the while she must survive her sadistic stepfather.
Alfonso Cuarón’s Children of Men is set in a futuristic London society where the human race has become infertile and humanity is on the brink of extinction. A man named Theo becomes caught up in a race to save a miraculously pregnant young girl named Kee, fighting harsh immigration laws, terrorist groups, and government organizations.
I find it fascinating that Cuarón and del Toro are such close friends, because these two films, though containing entirely different subject matter, are incredibly similar. Both films are about dystopian societies, though Pan’s Labyrinth is set in the past and Children of Men is set in the future. Both of the directors have Catholic backgrounds, according to Lynn Hirschberg’s article “Directors Without Borders,” and this is visible in both of the films. Children of Men is full of religious symbolism, the most prominent being Kee representing the Mary-figure and her child representing the Christ-figure. Del Toro says in Hirschberg’s article, “I try to take all that’s beautiful about religion—free will, virtue, nobility—and apply it to life. Ultimately, my films are about characters trying to access some kind of spiritual realm on earth.” Ofelia creates the idea of the underworld to escape from the horrors and tragedies of her reality, and she relies on the idea of her father (her “real” father, the King of the Underworld) saving her. And (*SPOILER ALERT!!!*) when she dies at the end of the film, she is transported into her ideal world, becoming the princess she believes she is meant to be and reuniting with her mother and father; this world is her own personal Heaven.
The religious aspect of Pan’s Labyrinth is disputed in Katje Richstatter’s “Two Dystopian Movies…and their Visions of Hope.” The article discusses the characterizations of humans into good, evil, and innocents, but goes on to say that religion is on the side of evil in this film. This statement is in reference to the fact that there are several priests present at the Captain’s dinner party. The article then says that Ofelia’s redemption lies in the world of magic and pagan gods. My opinion is that the themes in Pan’s Labyrinth are pro-religion, not anti-religion. Even though there is magic and fantastical creatures involved, it is similar to The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis; there is magic and fantastical creatures in that series, but the overall theme of the series is Christian-based, with the God-figure represented by Aslan the Lion. The God-figure in Pan’s Labyrinth (again, my opinion) is the King of the Underworld, the man who Ofelia believes is her real father (if she is indeed the reincarnated princess). I see the King as the God-figure because he is powerful and seemingly unreachable, yet he loves his daughter unconditionally and welcomes her home with open arms at the end of the film, despite the fact that she strayed so far from him.
The endings of both films are similar in the way of ambiguity; after watching both films, I was and still am unable to decide if the endings were happy or sad. I think that was the intention by the directors, so that the audience could interpret whichever way they wanted. It could also be that they were trying to preserve the realism; Cuarón especially tried to make Children of Men as realistic as possible, choosing a more documentary feel, using very little lighting and manipulating it so that it appeared to come from natural sources on screen, and shooting long takes in mostly wide shot to keep the audience captivated. There is no real explanation about the endings of the films, which would normally be unsatisfying; an audience typically wants a closed, definite ending. However, Children of Men and Pan’s Labyrinth are both such intriguing, intense films that the endings of both seem very appropriate. Richstatter’s article also mentioned that both films “are dark but not despondent.” I agree with this statement; even though the films are very intense, dramatic, tragic, suspenseful, etc. there is always an element of hope present. In Children of Men, the hope lies with Kee and her baby, and with Theo getting the two of them to safety. In Pan’s Labyrinth it is the idea that Ofelia will complete her tasks and become princess, escaping her hellish life. The point is, no matter how bleak things may look, there is never an instance of “all is lost,” even at the end of the films when (*SPOILER ALERT!!!!*) Ofelia is killed and Theo is (possibly?) killed. We know that Ofelia has made it to her palace, and that Kee has made it to her sanctuary.
Overall, I greatly enjoyed both films. I have seen Children of Men multiple times, and it is one of my favorite films. This was my first viewing of Pan’s Labyrinth, and once I watched it and then read the articles, I was not in the least bit surprised that the two directors are such close friends. The films have so much in common, despite telling completely different stories.
Memorable Moments:
These are just a couple of things I wanted to make mention of but couldn’t fit in anywhere else.
• Anthony Lane in his article “Under the Volcano” refers to Captain Vidal as “an immaculate sadist.” I love this description; it suits the character perfectly. I thought this myself as I was watching the film, though in many more words than the ones Lane used to sum up the character. Captain Vidal spent however long brutally torturing the captured rebel and washed the blood from his hands off in the rain, and not a hair was out of place. Brilliant description.
• In the New York Times article, Alejandro González Iñárritu is quoted as saying, “Good directors don’t answer questions with their work. They generate debate and create discussion.” I completely agree with this statement. I love watching a film, then leaving the theater or room or wherever and immediately launching into a discussion of the film. I love when the people I’m with get a different read on the film than I did, and therefore have different opinions of it. Sometimes I think a film can and should be made in response to a question that the filmmaker is curious about, but since there are usually so many answers to every question, I think the result is much better if the film asks questions instead of answers them.
• I also want to point out the color schemes of both films. The colors in each are very muted, using greys, greens, blues, etc. The only bright colors are explosions and blood. This is true in both films. I love these color schemes because they make the blood more vibrant, more shocking. It’s always sort of a shock to my system when I see the bright red of the blood against such a muted backdrop, and it makes that moment in the film all that more intense and meaningful.
New Terminology:
Dystopian: [dystopia] an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad (opposite of utopia)
Flagellants: people who subject themselves or others to flogging, either as a religious discipline or for sexual gratification
Aegis: the protection, backing, or support of a particular person or organization
Eldritch: weird and sinister or ghostly
Despondent: in low spirits from loss of hope or courage
Scumbled: [scumble] modify by applying a very thin coat of opaque paint to give a softer or duller effect (I can see how this word fits in context to these films, though obviously not with paint)
Obsequies: funeral rites
Myopic: nearsightedness; lack of imagination, foresight, or intellectual insight
Macabre: disturbing and horrifying because of involvement with or depiction of death or injury
Insularity: ignorant of or uninterested in cultures, ideas, or people outside one’s own experiences
Apparatchik: (derogatory/humorous) an official in a large organization, typically a political one
Eschatological: the part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul of humankind
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