Movie Review: Pans Labyrinth4

4.5 out of 5 stars

"And it is said that the Princess returned to her father's kingdom. That she reigned there with justice and a kind heart for many centuries. That she was loved by her people. And that she left behind small traces of her time on Earth, visible only to those who know where to look."

This was the ending line in what I wasn't sure was going to be a good movie. The movie I am referring to here is Pan's Labyrinth. It came out in 2006 and was supposedly a child's fantasy movie, although, I would be hard pressed to show this to any children I know. I think kids would be scared to watch such a film and may have nightmares, but who knows. I would give this movie 4 out of 5 stars and say that it definitely was a sleeper that may have been missed.

I felt compelled to write about this movie, in particular, because of the last line of the movie. You see I have been struggling with the idea of purpose. Lately my head has been running around with ideas that ,10 or 15 years of my passing, nothing I said or did will make a difference and that it will be forgotten. That all of my good work or deeds will forever go un-noticed after my eventual passing. It is not a great train of thought, but one that is often felt, I am sure, by many people in the world. "What will it matter?"

Enter perspective. I have been throwing this thought that I don't matter or won't matter around for quite sometime. In my tired, somber, wanting to sleep mode, last night I put the movie on only to fall asleep in several scenes of the movie. I would wake up and rewind and find that i did this several times in the night until sleep got the best of me towards the end of the movie.

When I awoke, I plugged my now dead laptop and gave it a few minutes to charge up before I resumed the film. I backed up a few chapters just to make sure I remembered where I fell asleep. I watched the ending with baited breath and looked for, hoped and waited for the all neccessary ending that makes or breaks a movie: the final line. You see to me, the ending scene should leave the audience with an impression or a thought to think about as they leave and go about their way. Guillermo was very succinct and timely with his message.

What I pulled from this and it is the question that I have been wrestling with for so many years, is that will my time here make a difference. I have been looking too broadly for that answer thinking, "This planet is too big and I can't make that big a difference." But the truth, to me now, is that I leave behind small traces of my time here to significant people who know where to look for the paintings and art I have left. It was so blatantly obvious but it took universal timing and a fantastic story to get me to see this.

So I will leave you with this, If you are feeling like you don't make a difference, ask yourself "Are you doing anything for anyone else?" If the answer is yes and you feel like you have accomplished something worthwhile, then you are leaving your mark. Hopefully that person will see what you did and pay it forward to a friend, neighbor, loved one or even their own child. Logically the good work you did can be traced back and it becomes the circle of life. Your life directly affected another and that put events in motion. That is what we are all here for... Think small...grow big....

Until next time...