continuing the spanish theme, saw pan's labyrinth on dvd, it's a spanish language film directed by a mexican (guillermo del toro). set in spain around the time of world war ii/spanish civil war, with the fascist franco regime running the country. it centres around a little girl (ofelia), and an army captain (vidal, ofelia's step father). two stories are intertwined, one of fantasy, the other of real life and brutality. vidal is fighting guerillas in a remote spanish location, and requests his wife (ofelia's mother) -- pregnant with a son -- to join him, so that he can be with them at the birth.
ofelia has visions (real or imagined, i don't think it matters) of a fairy which takes her to a labyrinth, where a faun waits. he tells her that she is a princess and that her father has waited for her return for a long time. he tells her to perform three tasks so that she can return to her realm and be with her family.
i'll leave it at that, because i think it's a really good film, and very different. it was not only good to watch a spanish film (listen to and spot some of the words/phrases that we've been learning), but that it turned out to be a really good film, was a bonus. personally, i'd put it right up there with no country for films i've seen this year, or last, really. really well done in terms of the plot, the characters, the way the two stories work together, and the finished product. i haven't enjoyed a foreign language film this much since the french film, taxi (or maybe ever).
pic taken from wikipedia.
#33 dtra (david tran)
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, semi-pro starring will ferrell is a film based in the 70's at the time of the aba merger with the nba....