DISCUSSION | Pan's Labyrinth

2006 | 1hr 58mins | Fantasy Drama | Rated 15 | Dir. Guillermo Del Toro

Not a cute fairytale, but the product of imagination of the broken child.

No one knows if the other world we see in the movie is real or if it is just Ofelia’s imagination. I personally lean towards the second interpretation. Why would I say that? Because there is only one character who can see it all.

 

Ofelia is the main character of ’Pan’s Labyrinth’ and always feels alone. Her Dad has died and now she has to move with her pregnant mother to her sinister stepfather’s place. He seems to be one of the worst villains in the history of cinematography.

To stop her loneliness and despair, Ofelia creates her own world where she acts as a brave and adventurous girl and she sees a fairy, a fawn like the god, Pan, and other creatures. Initially she isn’t even surprised which suggests that she was prepared to see them because she made them up herself. The fawn asks her to complete 3 tasks so she can return back to her real world and finally meet her true father. 

In addition, the storyline takes place in 1944 in Spain during the Civil War where the real world looks scary, dark and too dangerous for a 10 year old girl. People are dying fighting for their country and her Mum dies after giving birth to a son. Nothing seems normal anymore. I assume the story she created in her head is a method to escape this awful reality. Despite Ofelia’s attempt to do this she still dies. She refuses to sacrifice her brother even though the centaur says it’s a crucial part of opening up another world but Ofelia is adamant.

 

At the end of the movie she realises she cannot let anyone hurt the only person she loves (except for Mercedes who Ofelia thinks is dead) even though it means staying in the real world, full of pain. 

Ofelia dies and sees the world she was dreaming of where she meets her mother who is alive and her father who has been waiting for her to return. A smile on Ofelia’s fading face tells us she is finally happy. 

- Kseniia Pozdeeva 

REVIEW | American Murder: The Family Next Door

2020 | 1hr 23mins | Crime Documentary | Rated 15 | Dir. Jenny Popplewell

The disturbing look into the Watts murder case as Netflix release ‘American Murder: The Family Next Door’.

British filmmaker, Jenny Popplewell, presents a raw and harrowing look at the Watts murder case that took place in 2018. A film that immerses the audience in a series of heart-breaking and chilling never-seen-before home videos, law enforcement recordings and text messages.

On 14th August 2018, the FBI and Colorado Bureau of Investigation joined an investigation into the disappearance of pregnant mother of two Shanann Watts. An alarmed friend had asked for an officer’s assistance, after her string of concerned messages had failed to be returned. Shanann’s husband, Chris, was also seemingly distressed by the departure of his wife, who had no apparent cause to disappear and was very quick to assist the police with their investigation, so much so he even agreed to a polygraph. In the days that followed, the police unravel haunting evidence and confessions that eventually lead to the discovery of 34-year-old Shanann Watts and her two daughters. 

With the blessing of Shanann’s family, the film is strikingly raw and intimate, as we bear-witness to the incredibly personal and deeply tragic text messages that Shanann shared with friends throughout her and Chris’s relationship. The narrative has been entirely constructed from a series of social media inserts, home videos and official police surveillance footage. Some of the texts at times can feel a little too intrusive into Shanann’s personal life, which does beg the question of how exploitative crime documentaries can be in exposing people’s (once private) deepest thoughts. This being said, Popplewell directed the film with the utmost respect, in no way glorifying or adding dramatized entertainment to the film. The film is an important reminder of violence against women and the traps we descend into on social media, as we fall guilty to its deception. 

The footage showed within the 1 hour 23-minute documentary, is un-unnervingly unfiltered. The juxtaposition of Shanann’s positive outlook on life, as expressed in her countless social media posts is uncomfortable to look at, as the extent of her unhappiness in her personal life runs parallel to what we see behind the happiness of her social media presence. 

The biggest weakness within the film is that a large proportion of the audience will already know who the perpetrator is. The film holds back the confession for as long as possible. Seeing as the case made worldwide headline news, the build- up will only be impactful for those rare few who aren’t aware of the crime prior to watching. The film poses a huge amount of reoccurring ‘why’ questions and begs the need for further explanation from the perpetrator. As Popplewell decisively articulates within the film, this documentary is not about the ‘guess who’ entertainment factor. The film focuses more on the journey into condemning the offender and explains the extent to which abuse against women is dominant in America. As more and more lies unfold, it’s difficult not to feel a deep sense of revolt after watching such a raw and first-hand account of the events that occurred and the extent to which someone is willing to lie.

A good proportion of time is devoted to interrogation footage. Having access to such raw and poignant footage was crucial to getting comprehension into the mindset of both the victim and perpetrator. In this case, there can be little understanding of the perpetrator’s actions as we witness the cold-blooded evil and manipulation shown on the footage. The fact that there was no re-enactment involved, due to the vast collection of material they were able to access, is to be commended. Popplewell made the film with compassion and humility, gaining the trust and permission of Shanann’s family to serve a haunting and deeply heart-breaking watch. 

The presentation of this heinous crime will leave a lasting impression on all those who watch it, highlighting the supposed ‘normality’ of some of its perpetrators. It’s a heartfelt cry for support against abuse, underlining humility and trusting instincts. Overall the film was a slow-burning but claustrophobic and terrifying insight into pure evil, as a sociopathic monster is uncovered. 

- Elizabeth McCafferty