Magic and fantasy are not the exclusive province of Hollywood. Take a foray into the fantasy worlds of some foreign films.
Film lovers who adore movies like Avatar or the Lord of the Rings trilogy which travel beyond every day reality should consider venturing outside of Hollywood in their cinema choices. Foreign fantasy films provide not only the novelty of an alternate universe but a fascinating peek into the cultures, histories and mores of other parts of the globe. The thrill of sci-fi and magical creatures can resonate just as deeply when these fantasy figures speak in a foreign tongue. Critics and film fans alike praise these three films in particular.
Pan's Labyrinth
Pan's Labyrinth, made in 2006 by Guillermo Del Toro, juxtaposes politics and fantasy in the world encountered by an 11-year old girl in the Spain of the 1940s. This dark fairy tale begins with its young heroine, Ofelia, taking a long car trip with her heavily pregnant mother in order to dwell with the mother's new husband, a brutal fascist officer. When they arrive at their destination, Ofelia finds the surrounding woods hold both insect-like fairies and revolutionaries engaged in guerrilla action against Franco's regime. Ofelia meets an ancient faun who sets her three magical tasks she must complete in order to claim her true identity as a princess and reunite with her kingly real father. Although the film contains creepy looking non-human creatures, they are shown to be far less horrifying than the girl's stepfather. J. Hoberman, film critic for the Village Voice, called Pan's Labyrinth "alchemical . . . superbly integrated and marvelously fluid."
Spirited Away
This Japanese animation film tells the story of a little girl who must rescue her parents when the family stumbles into the realm of a witch who turns those who displease her into animals. Although highly representative of the Japanese style of animation and steeped in Japanese folklore, the version of the film released in the US is in English with some voices contributed by well-known American actors and others by Japanese talent. C.W. Nevius of the San Francisco Chronicle called the film a "lovely, evocative tour de force." Spirited Away director Hayao Miyazaki is also responsible for other acclaimed animation fantasy films including Ponyo, Princess Mononoke and Howl's Moving Castle.
Amelie
Unlike many special-effect laden fantasy movies, this 2001 French film uses magical realism to create a mood of romance and charm. The movie takes places in an idealized version of Paris, which Entertainment Weekly film reviewer Lisa Schwarbaum likened to a "Gallic Brigadoon . . . filled with beautiful coincidences and unselfconscious oddballs." The dark-haired, petite heroine, played by Audrey Tautou works as a waitress but finds her true calling as a sort of elf, meddling in secret ways to bestow happiness on near-strangers. Through a series of twists of fate and fantastical coincidences, she ultimately finds her soulmate, a man as quirky as Amelie herself.
