3Pan’s Labrynth (2006)
Guillermo del Toro has a bit of a reputation for loving the practical special effects and old school monster designs of Hollywood, but The Pale Man in Pan’s Labyrinth might be his best work yet. It’s the kind of unsettling oddity that works perfectly in Pan’s Labyrinth when the viewer’s never quite sure if what they’re seeing is real, or just the delusion of a pitiful child in a bad situation.
The movie doesn’t dwell on the Pale Man overlong—he’s just one part of Ofelia’s quest—but his unsettling appearance will stay with the viewer long after the movie. The horror of the Pale Man comes from the mystery of the design. Why is such a thin creature dining on a massive buffet? Why does it use its hands to see? Does del Toro want to give me nightmares? The answer to that last question, by the way, is a definitive yes.
