OWFILM WORLD CUP Round 1: Spain vs. Wales

By Laurent Kelly / June 14, 2010

Voting has now ended on the Scotland match and Trainspotting didn't perform as impressively as we predicted it would and the longer it went on the closer the Mongolians pegged them back but in the end - the Scots were never really in too much trouble.

Scotland (Trainspotting) 76% defeating Mongolia (The Cave of the Yellow Dog) 24%.

First Round of OWFilm World Cup

The actual Football World Cup in South Africa is proving to be one big disappointing snooze-fest, so why not spend your time deliberating on our fourth OWFilm World Cup Match between Spain and Wales. Mexican film-maker Guillermo Del Toro is responsible for the Spanish-language entry, the disturbing fairytale Pan's Labyrinth, and the Wales entry is, well, a movie that I doubt anyone has even heard of. Pretty much like the players in the current Welsh footballing team, eh? Vote now for which film you want to see advance to the next round. Remember you are voting for YOUR OPINION on which film you prefer. Tale of the Reel is after the Jump...

Pan€™s Labryinth (2006)

OSCAR COUNT (3) IMDB (8.4, #68) RT 95% EMPIRE TOP 500: (#132nd)

Won Oscars for Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction and Best Make-up

Pan€™s Labryinth presents the darker side of the fairy tale, albeit one without the fleeting close ups and uplifting sentimentality. Its $37 million domestic box office proves however that there is an adult audience for the genre when it is handled with such creative flair and told with such bold emotion. The film works as both a war story featuring some brilliant character studies of courage and cowardice and as a fascinating fantasy tale where creatures such as the Pale Man both excite and disturb in equal measure. Ultimately director Guillermo del Toro pulls off a major feat in being able to ground fantasy in the harshness of the real world. What he creates is an awesome visual spectacle carried through with great gusto and heart. In 2006 esteemed critics Roger Ebert and Mark Kermode both named Pan€™s Labryinth as their film of the year. INTERESTING FACT: The film received twenty two minutes of applause at the Cannes Film Festival.

Solomon and Gaenor (1999)

OSCAR COUNT (0) RT (68%) IMDB (6.6) EMPIRE TOP 500: Not listed

Solomon and Gaenor is a story told in the Romeo and Juliet mold as it portrays the tragic, forbidden love story between a young Jewish man (Ioan Gruffudd) and a Welsh woman (Nice Roberts) at the beginning of the 20th century. The Welsh entry has a fairly varied response amongst critics. Some people find the film too unrelentingly grim and predictable and in Ebert€™s review he argues that after a while the romantic leads begin to grow quite tiresome:

€œGruffudd and Roberts are convincing in their roles--and moving, up to a point, until we grow impatient with their lack of caution and foresight.€

It was nominated for the Best Foreign-Language Oscar in 2000 and was awarded a BAFTA for Best Film. INTERESTING FACT: The movie was actually filmed twice, once with principal dialogue in English and once in Welsh. WRITER€™S VERDICT: Solomon and Gaenor is respectable for its harsh nature and for not succumbing to the usual melodramatic trite that you expect from films of this calibre. On the other hand Pan€™s Labryinth is a stunning spectacle which is careful to make the characters and story as convincing and engaging as the special effects. For me it is right up there with films such as The Pianist and City of God (both also in this competition, representing Poland and Brazil respectively) when talking about the best movies if the last decade. For that reason, Spain definitely deserve the nod here.