Pan's Labyrinth

Ooh boy. This Spanish film is sooo not a kid's movie. The trailers mask the depth, drama and true horror of this tragic tale set during the Spanish Civil War. I honestly thought I was going to see a "happy flick". Instead, I watched a Spanish dictator torture and kill rebels in the woods, heads bashed in with a wine bottle, bodies slashed by stolen knives and a 12-year-old girl (Ofelia) desperately trying to keep it together. Her pregnant mom lies near her death while her stepdad (the fascist Capt. Vidal) cares only for his newborn son-to-be. Ofelia is a darker Alice in Wonderland who lives in the land of make-believe. Who wouldn't when your dad is a killer and your mom can't protect you? She's convinced (by a faun she meets down an Alice in Wonderland like hole) that she is the princess of the underworld with a duty to restore balance to her kingdom. Her three challenges themselves are anti-climactic but the emotion and power behind them captivate. Director/Writer Guillermo del Toro (Blade II, Hellboy) has certainly earned his seven Oscar nominations including best Foreign Film and Best Original Screenplay.