I'd agree there. I mean I did enjoy the movie but the insanely high RT score and the awards are a bit to much

That Nose smashing was pretty random alright. And graphic.

You can read it that way if you want, but I personally felt there were more instances that suggested things were real than instances that suggest otherwise.

In example:

[spoil]1. The mandrake root. The mother throws it into the fire and all of the sudden goes into labor and dies.

2. The piece of chalk the faun gives her which is later found by that evil guy. Not to mention her getting around the guard outsider her door.

3. The tree at the ending coming back to life.[/spoil]

But, could be just me.

The lack of fantasy bothered me a lot less then the inconsistency of it. The film itself reminded me very much of Big Fish - not a good thing one bit. Del Toro is by far the superior storyteller over Burton, but he also fell to something of a case of style over substance. The idea that innocence triumphs over evil really didn't flow with the movie. A strong cast and several memorable scenes aside (it's all about the eyeball hands guy), this is right up there with The Fountain and Poseidon for the most dissapointing film of the year. Still, it was well done, just absolutely over-rated.

Decent movie. B

Guillermo del Toro, is that you?

I don't disagree entirely, but I did like it. Probably a B+ from me, after thinking about it.

Wonderful film.

A

Amazing to look at and very well-acted but I can't say I wasn't a little disappointed. I wanted more fantasy stuff (loved the eyeball hands guy) and less cliched war stuff that has been done too much already. The fantasy stuff is what makes the film different and that's what I wanted to see more of. That's why I saw the film in the first place.

Grade - Probably a B+

Just perfect. A fantastic symbiosis of war drama and fairy tale. The mix of fantasy and real stuff is just right since this is not a fantasy, the fantasy is just there to parallel the real life stuff A-

I think many people didn't quite get the movie. The fantasy stuff was clearly invented by Ofelia because that is her only way of understanding the world around her. The parallels are not a coincidence, look at Pan. He is nice as long as she follows his orders. He is basically her stepfather with a strange head. I don't want to get into more details so I don't spoiler anything

That's a very strict interpretation of the film. What's a matter, don't ya believe in fairy tales?

I don't think it's so "clear." For me, it requires too many coincidences, especially to agree that it's so clear. This isn't Magnolia.

Okay, I did a little research. Apparently Guillermo del Toro did a feature for "Empire" magazine in which he talks about his movie and explains it.

Next up: Stanley Kubrick back from the dead to explain 2001: A Space Odyssey...

While reflecting on the movie I still think he may have left it open for the viewers to interpret for themselves. There are instances that can make you think one way, and instances that can make you think the other way. And after the movie was over, there were a couple of instances for me that outweighed the others (if the fantasy world is just "imagined" it looks like to me that she'd have to be a bit psychic). The directors own words aside, he didn't make it so obvious that one interpretation was much more obvious and logical than the next through the course of the movie.

Of course, aside from my previous resoning there's another reason for my interpretation that I can't deny, that the way I looked at the whole movie makes it a better movie for me. Somewhat selfish but I'M TAKING IT!

Levy,
[spoil]
Asked whether Ofelia's fantasy world is real or all in her mind, del Toro is quick to assert that, as far as he's concerned, it's all true. "There's a very clear instance in the movie where there is no other explanation," he says. "In my mind, the movie tries to say that if you don't know where to look, you won't see these creatures. Like Vidal--he's unable to see them." Nevertheless, del Toro acknowledges that other viewers might interpret the film differently. "There are two kinds of audiences for this movie: one that will believe it's real and the other that will think it's imaginary. For me, the movie is like a Rorschach test. It defines you as a glass-half-empty or glass-half-full person. Which is fine, I like the idea of that being your choice."

http://www.filmjournal.com/filmjournal/ ... 1003523522
[/spoil]

And...

[spoil]
This is the dispute going on among people who have seen your film. Was Ofelia in her fantasy world? Was it a real world? I keep saying such questions pose a false dichotomy.

Del Toro: Yes, of course. And it's intimate. If the movie works as a piece of storytelling, as a piece of artistic creation, it should tell something different to everyone. It should be a matter of personal discussion. Now objectively, the way I structured it, there are three clues in the movie that tell you where I stand. I stand in that it's real. The most important clues are the flower at the end, and the fact that there's no way other than the chalk door to get from the attic to the Captain's office.

MG: Yes, and again referring back to the dynamic of their dyad, Mercedes notices the chalk door; they aren't just in Ofelia's imagination.

Del Toro: Objectively, those two clues tell you it's real. The third clue is she's running away from her stepfather, she reaches a dead end, by the time he shows up she's not there. Because the walls open for her. So sorry, there are clues that tell you where I stand and I stand by the fantasy. Those are objective things if you want. The film is a Rorschach test of where people stand.
http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/008507.html[/spoil]

I agree that she "creates" the world, and it clearly parallels and helps her deal with the real world but I don't think that that necessarily means the fantasy is not 'real'. In any case, it was definitely 'real' to her, and that's all that really matters.

Edited to leave links.

Indeed!

BJs Grade:

A

I thought it was great, the fantasy be real IMHO.

Interesting. That's totally different to the feature he wrote in December...

My thoughts

[spoil]I feel that it is up to ithe viewers magination, but I believe that if Guillermo thinks the world was real, he would have focused on it much more in the film, rather than the world around. He makes huge grounds to show how miserable her real life is.

My interpretation is that she obviously went to heaven. Who wouldnt after what she went through, but everyone makes up their own heaven and in this case, its her fantasy world.[/spoil]

How clever. He's totally playing both sides of the fence so people make up their own minds. Or to confuse us to no end! Dasterdly!

One of the best of the year, wonderfully original and imaginitive.

Grade - A

Wow!!!

Incredible film. Truly shocking. Executed to perfection.

Has earned a spot in my top ten of last year...an incredible film experience. Amazing visuals, direction, and writing.

A