Pan's Labyrinth

Supreme fantasist Del Toro has yet to turn in a duff movie.

Even arch-interferers Miramax couldn't completely ruin Mimic, and Hellboy perfectly captured the spirit of the cult comic.

But the director is best when working in his native Spanish language and Pan's Labyrinth is a triumph of glittering imagination.

As World War II draws to a close, young Ofelia (Baquero) and her pregnant mother are taken to the Spanish mountains to join her mother's monstrous new husband, Captain Vidal (Lopez), a sadist in Franco's fascist guard.

Vidal is charged with routing resistance fighters from the surrounding hills, a task he undertakes with brutal zeal.

Against this, Ofelia discovers an underworld in which legendary faun Pan (Doug Jones) informs her she is the daughter of the underworld's King, and must past three tests to win a place by his side.

An irresistible blend of harsh realism and beautifully realized flights of fancy, Pan's Labyrinth is glorious, spellbinding adventure.

Like all great fairytales, it has a resilient child hero, a sick parent, trials of character and, in Vidal, one of the most terrifying monsters ever: even more terrifying than a cadaverous child devouring demon (Jones again) with eyes in his palms, whose encounter with Ofelia is a suspense set-piece of Spielbergian brilliance.

Deftly woven into this Grimm tale is a story of resistance against Franco's fanatical bully-boys.

Like Del Toro's equally masterful The Devil's Backbone, Pan's Labyrinth is a story about children growing up beneath the cloud of fascism, but with its shocking bursts of violence is definitely not one for the youngsters.

Del Toro's smart dialogue and characterization makes both his heroes and villains recognizably human, including resistance mole Mercedes (Y Tu Mama Tambien's Verdu) and a saintly Doctor (Angulo).

Shot with a Gilliamesque eye for rustic detail, Del Toro and cinematographer Guillermo Navarro boldly and dazzlingly bring their fantasy world to life, while Javier Navarette's score should be the backing track to all bedtime stories.

The kind of film Tim Burton wishes he could make, magical and uncompromising in equal measure, Pan's Labyrinth is as close to perfection as movies get. Pan-tastic.

Rob Daniel