Pan's Labyrinth

Pan's Labyrinth (Spanish: El laberinto del fauno, lit. 'The Labyrinth of the Faun') is a 2006 dark fantasy film written and directed by Guillermo del Toro. The film, a Spanish-Mexican co-production, stars Ivana Baquero, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú, Doug Jones, and Ariadna Gil.

The story takes place in Spain during the summer of 1944, five years after the Spanish Civil War, during the early Francoist period. The narrative intertwines this real world with a mythical world centered on an overgrown, abandoned labyrinth and a mysterious faun, with whom the main character, Ofelia, interacts. Ofelia's stepfather, the Falangist Captain Vidal, hunts the Spanish Maquis who fight against the Francoist regime in the region, while Ofelia's pregnant mother Carmen grows increasingly ill. Ofelia meets several strange and magical creatures who become central to her story, leading her through the trials of the old labyrinth garden.

The film was novelized by del Toro and Cornelia Funke and published in 2019.

Plot
In a fairy tale, Princess Moanna, whose father is the king of the underworld, visits the human world, where the sunlight blinds her and erases her memory. She becomes mortal and eventually dies. The king believes that eventually, her spirit will return to the underworld, so he builds labyrinths (which act as portals) around the world in preparation for her return.

In 1944 Francoist Spain, ten-year-old Ofelia travels with her pregnant but sickly mother Carmen to meet Captain Vidal, her new stepfather. Vidal, the son of a famed commander who died in Morocco, believes strongly in Falangism and has been assigned to hunt down republican rebels. A large stick insect, which Ofelia believes to be a fairy, leads Ofelia into an ancient stone labyrinth, but she is stopped by Vidal's housekeeper Mercedes, who is secretly supporting her brother Pedro and other rebels. That night, the insect appears in Ofelia's bedroom, where it transforms into a fairy and leads her through the labyrinth. There she meets a faun, who believes she is the reincarnation of Princess Moanna. He gives her a book and tells her she will find in it three tasks to complete in order for her to acquire immortality and return to her kingdom.

Cast

 * Ivana Baquero as Ofelia / Princess Moanna
 * Sergi López as Captain Vidal
 * Maribel Verdú as Mercedes
 * Doug Jones as the Faun, the Pale Man
 * Ariadna Gil as Carmen / Queen of the Underworld
 * Álex Angulo as Doctor Ferreiro
 * Manolo Solo as Garcés
 * César Vea as Serrano
 * Roger Casamajor as Pedro
 * Federico Luppi as King of the Underworld, Ofelia's father
 * Pablo Adán as Narrator / Voice of Faun