Review of Pan`s Labyrinth (HD DVD)

Introduction

I`d been holding back from the SD release of this film, after having seen it on its original theatrical run. Not because I wasn`t interested in seeing it again, but instead due to the possibility of an HD release, in which I`d get to see a great looking film in even great clarity. It`s been difficult, because the DVD release can be picked up for an absolute bargain price, and because the mooted HD-DVD version has been a long time coming. A French THX certified version did make it onto the market a while back, but for some unknown (read: idiotic) reason, it didn`t include English subtitles. At that point no-one was sure that it would even get a UK (or even English subbed/dubbed) release, so I was glad to see the pre-order listings go up for the film, directed by Guillermo Del Toro, a good few months back.

So finally, I`ve got my hands on a copy. I think you can tell with the general gist of this introduction that yes - I do like this film. But does it transfer well onto HD DVD, and if so, in reflection was it as good as we all thought it was upon its original release? Don`t forget, this is the film that narrowly missed out on an Oscar, with the award instead going to German thriller `The Lives of Others`, so its clearly highly regarded in the movie world. Further to that, Del Toro has barely put a foot wrong in his career, and this is a return to roots, practically making a trilogy of films behind Cronos (a good debut vampire themed horror flick) and The Devils Backbone (a masterful, war set, ghost story). So we know we`re in good hands.

Though not a continuation of The Devil`s Backbone, it explores a similar theme in the same period of time, and concerns a small girl`s journey as she joins her stepfather in a Spanish woodland camp, while her mother is pregnant. As her father, Captain Vidal, hunts guerrillas in the surrounding areas, Ofelia `escapes` to a mysterious world where she meets a mysterious faun, who gives her three tasks in order to prove her royalty as a princess.

Video

A good clean transfer, as you would expect. The chosen aspect ratio means it takes up the whole of the screen, which is pretty unusual when it comes to HD DVDs; to not be letterboxed is a pleasant surprise. It features bright vivid colours, that really show off the film, even if the image was a little soft and slightly noisy at time. The opening scenes, as the mother and daughter travel to the mill, really look beautiful, with the forest greenery really impressing. The darker scenes don`t impress so much however; detail is lost somewhat and image is generally noisy (I noticed this in particular on a close-up of Ofelia`s hand at around Scene 7). Unfortunately the UK version lacks the THX mix, and thus the optimizer that goes with it. So I wasn`t ever 100% on whether the representation was true to the film. That`s not to say I noticed any errors in terms of colourisation or black levels, and any compression was only noticeable if you were to stare solidly at the background.
Overall though, it does look beautiful almost throughout, and it IS the best way to see it at home. Although it might not necessarily impress in the same way as some other titles, it still looks very good.

Audio

The sounds is very clear, and coming through the speakers the score sounded brilliant, better than I remembered it being the first time around. Even though I was paying attention to the subtitles, I was still able to appreciate the clean sound and beautiful job done on the 5.1, even if it doesn`t take advantage of the full capabilities of the format. It`s worth noting that this film does not feature a DTS track, and for better sound options it might be worth looking towards the US version.

Features

Review to follow...

Conclusion

Seen as a sister film to the equally excellent `The Devil`s Backbone`, `Pan`s Labyrinth` is a darkly imaginative fairytale. Moving between the hellish real world and a nightmarish fantasy land, whilst exploring childhood innocence and the brutalities of war, the film produces a unique concoction that is totally compelling from the offset.

It can be incredibly violent, to the extent to where the viewer will want to turn away, but it`s scenes like these that remind you of what era we`re dealing with, the true horrors of war, and why a small girl might want to escape to an imaginary land. It shocks and awes in equal measures, and it`s the beauty of the work, and the careful consideration that Del Toro has taken during the production of this feature that assures you that no matter what, you won`t have seen anything quite like it before. The sets, characters and overall design in both practical and CGI terms are outstanding. There`s little that`s released in the mainstream that contains the types of ideas and originality as seen in `Pan`s Labyrinth`.
Del Toro`s English language output has not been consistent as that of his native land, but I hope that he continues to dip into both markets. When given full creative reigns, he`s only just behind Tim Burton when it comes to a filmmaker letting their imagination run wild. Yes, the inspirations from other (mostly lesser) films are there, but Pan`s is a work of art at times; anyone who`s seen the film will be able to immediately bring up the image of The Pale Man during the second task… A character played both terrifically and horrifically by Doug Jones. Exploring similar themes to `The Devil`s Backbone`, albeit in a much more fantastical way, `Pan`s Labyrinth` is a marvel to behold at times.

Considering it`s a fairytale story, set in a very adult world, it could have been a hard film to market to adults, and indeed perhaps it doesn`t strike me as being one that the average film goer might pick off the shelf. Now is as good a time as any then, for newcomers to see this, in either SD or HD, because this is a modern masterpiece, and they don`t come along very often.