Jun 23, 2015 We're back! I was discouraged after the flop but some FlickYouCrew members have persuaded me to try to keep this going. This week we'll be attempting one of the most successful nonUS films of all time, Pan's Labyrinth. Spoiler @Youngshady @Zep @Flacko @Old_Parr @Narsh @Koolo @Sheriff Skippy @FilmAndWhisky @Five Star @KingDrizz @j94ose @Nuredin B @Soldier @Raziel @The Product @Pinhead
Jun 23, 2015 LMAO i completely forgot about the viewing club thread sorry haha, this movie looks pretty good im gonna download it now again my bad for forgetting to the thread :/
Jun 23, 2015 obv not in the club but, my god I just wanted to say what a treat any of you who haven't seen this are in for... it's f---ing great, I remember seeing this when it came out
Jun 23, 2015 Absolutely love this movie..definitely considered tattooing The Faun on me for the longest time, I still might.
Jun 23, 2015 What is the viewing club and can I join it??? Is it like a book club on S80 but for movies?
Jun 23, 2015 Exactly. We also have a Listening Club as well for albums that I'll be revamping shortly.
Jun 23, 2015 I probably won't get to rewatch this (I'm going to watch Cronenberg's Crash this week though!), but will say I'm a big fan. The film is strongly influenced by Victor Erice's The Spirit of the Beehive (an all-time favorite of mine), a movie also set in post civil war Spain about a young girl who uses fantasy to wrestle with, not escape from, her harsh reality. Whereas Erice's film has a haunting and mysterious quality that gets under the skin (part of its elusiveness was to avoid censors), Del Toro's film is far more direct in the allegory embedded within his vividly realized fantasy world. That simplicity, however, enables his anti-fascist fable to achieve its own power and emotional resonance.
Jun 23, 2015 Looking forward to this. Not a very big Del Toro fan aside from The Devil's Backbone so hopefully it ends up being decent.
Jun 23, 2015 I've been evading this one for far too long. The Spirit of the Beehive comparison got me hyped. This boutta be lit.
Jun 23, 2015 I think I joined in on the music one (not sure) but id be down for this. Im the farthest thing from a movie expert btw
Jun 24, 2015 along with The Devil's Backbone, Del Toro's best film. It's also one of only two (the other is The Lives of Others) films from the 2000s in recent volumes of Gail Kinn and Jim Piazza 101 Greatest Films of All Time. Haven't seen this since around when it was released, so I'm looking forward to a rewatch. I should really get on Spirit of the Beehive too..
Jun 24, 2015 Don't think Tree of Life was out yet. The real problem with the list is a skew towards American cinema. It's a pretty good book though, cause they provide for each film a review, history, director comments, box office achievements, equipment and budget etc. It's fairly comprehensive with some good research required tidbits for each film. Here's the list at least: http://letterboxd.com/maxwellz/list/gail-kinn-jim-piazzas-the-greatest-movies/page/2/
Jun 24, 2015 Okay so i watched the movie and i thought it was fantastic, i'm not a huge fan of fantasy films and after watching the trailer, although it looked interesting to check out, i wasn't too keen on watching it so going going into the movie my expectations were not really that high. I really enjoyed both the war and fantasy parts of the film and i think both worlds were both done really really well. Also i am not really a huge fan of non-us films but throughout the film i was so hooked into what was happening that it was okay. The whole concept of the movie was also interesting a girl, using fantasy to get away from the real world and i think it was executed really well. Il probably give the film another watch (maybe 2) throughout the week and post some more in detail thoughts on the film but on first watch i would probably give the film a 9.2 out of 10
Jun 24, 2015 Seeing Slumdog Millionaire there was very uncomfortable. Some good choices on the list though, it reminded me i need to see again Jules & Jim and 400 Blows because i wasnt prepared when i saw them. On Topic, i haven't seen Pan's Labyrinth, I'll try to see it but i've seen The Spirit of the Beehive and it's amazing, completely agree with Twan.
Jun 24, 2015 That's actually really weird, though, cause my book doesn't have Slumdog in it. Maybe this guy's letterboxd is more up to date or maybe it's a mistake.
Jun 25, 2015 Watched it last night, and it affected me more or less as it did the first time. Colours and special effects are glorious. The film is aMAZEing.. :P okay dad jokes aside, it's pretty darn excellent, and Del Toro's best. It weaves fantasy fiction and realism really well allowing for one to comment on the other: War kills imagination, Imagination provides respite from war. Transcendence is found in death, through sacrifice, what must be given to end war. Ultimately, the story is about an innocent girl who dies during post-civil war conflicts. Regardless whether you take the underworld to be true or false, her death is real and presents a painful view into the atrocities committed during this time. Also into the psychology behind warfare and those involved in it: i.e. the Captain in particular. Contrast is the film's chief function in style, theme, art: light and dark, good and bad, reality and illusion, innocence and depravity. These contrasts observe with little pretense the psychology of wartime affects, made visible through the girl's vivid imagination and self-discovery. 87/100 - Excellent
