3. Pan's Labyrinth- Ofelia's Final Moments In The Labyrinth
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqDiQj9t3mM Pan's Labyrinth has a similar conceit to Let the Right One In in that it deals with the horror inherent in life through the innocence of a child's eyes. Guillermo Del Toro actually shows this scene at the beginning of the film where Ofelia is lying dead in the middle of the labyrinth. Shock tactics are extremely prevalent in horror movies but you don't expect them in fantasy/drama films like Pan's Labyrinth. That is why this scene is so eery. The film's heroine is a little girl who is killed at the end of the movie by a sadistic fascist. That alone is enough to make any movie darkly terrifying but where it excels is by being incredibly beautiful at the same time. Guillermo Del Toro displays the beauty inherent in life and death in just one simple image of Ofelia lying dead with blood dripping out of her mouth. Where this could be very depressing it is actually an optimistic ending because Ofelia is revealed to be free from all of her pain and suffering.
Dolan Reynolds
Contributor
My favorite movies are Before Sunrise, Pulp Fiction, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Alien and Her so don't be surprised to see those pop up in my writing from time to time. I'm currently in school for Journalism/English and I have an obsession with all things cinematic on the side.
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