With close reference to two scenes from ‘Pans Labyrinth’ explore how cinematography and Mise-En scene create meaning (1250 – 1500 words) 

The pale man scene 

The pale man scene is a significant scene within the film ’Pans Labyrinth’ as it is a representation of the oppressive powers in Ophelia’s world. Del Toro creates a film where fantasy coincides with reality and the real world. The duality of the two worlds complement each other significantly, despite representing the fascist world Spain lived in during this time. The use of juxtaposition emphasises the way that Del Toro scrutinizes Spanish society. The monstrous character of the Pale man follows the story that The Faun assigns Ophelia three tasks in order to escape the depths of her reality and become princess of the fantasy world. The character of the pale man is interesting, as he appears to be castrated. This is interesting as the film is based around a heavily patriarchal society with heavy male domination. This could again be Del Toro’s way of scrutinizing Spanish society. 

The use of mise en scene within this shot is interesting as the props used, such as the arrangement of food on the table Is a representation of Spain’s fascist society. It could also be a representation of the Catholic church. This is evident as Ophelia is given strict instructions to not eat any of the food, despite eating it anyway. Until this, the creature appears to be stationary and doesn’t appear to be aware of Ophelia’s presence. This is until she defies the Faun’s instructions and proceeds to eat a grape. Everything about this setting and aesthetic implies danger, despite the Pale man appearing to be motionless. The camera lingers over the scene and reveals subtly distorted details, including the fact he doesn’t yet appear to have eyes. The use of camera angles and editing is also interesting, as the mixture of close ups and long shots increase the anticipation within the scene and allow the audience to realise that something bad is potentially about to happen. Similarly, the use of diegetic sound such as the increase in the volume of Ophelia's breathing also adds to the suspense. Additionally, the Pale Man essentially bites the heads off fairies and eats them. This could be interpreted as destroying childhood and innocence, which is exactly how Ofelia sees the Captain. The pale man could additionally be seen a representation of Spain’s catholic church at the time. Despite this, instead of cooler blue hues, the lighting appears to have warmer, yellow tones, making it feel like a safer environment, even though Ofelia is in just as much danger in this world as she is in the real world. This could perhaps be Del Toro’s way of criticizing the post war consensus Spain was living in.  

The editing used also adds meaning to the scene, as the shot reverse shot used when changing from Ophelia to the Pale man not only builds suspense, but it also allows us to acknowledge the fact that something bad is about to happen. Similarly, the use of the camera panning across the table and revealing the food emphasies the fascist society Ophelia was a part of and could perhaps be to do with the fact that during the time the film was made, rationing was used as the upper class were hoarding Spain’s limited resources. Lastly, the close of the dagger is significant within the scene as it was the reason Ophelia was sent to the Pale Man’s cave initially, however is ironic as it foreshadows the way she dies despite us thinking the Pale man will kill her as she ate the grape. 

Overall, it Is clear the cinematography and mise en scene used within this shot creates meaning. This is evident as it allows the audience to understand the society Ophelia lived in and the reasoning behind Del Toro’s scrutinization.  

The toad and the tree scene 

The toad and the tree scene is significant within the film ‘Pan’s labyrinth’ as it is a representation of the fantasy world Del Toro has created. As previously mentioned, the two worlds coincide with each other as a representation of the fascist society Spain lived in.  

The toad is a apart of one of the three tasks Ophelia was assigned by Faun. First, we see Ophelia wondering through the forest in a green silk dress. This is evidence of intertextuality as it is very similar to the 1951 Alice In Wonderland dress. Additionally, we also see Ophelia go through a hole in the fig tree in order to get to her fantasy world. This is again similar to Alice in wonderland and the rabbit hole she uses to get to her fantasy world. This emphasises the aspect of fairytale and allows the audience to differentiate the two worlds Del Toro created.  

In the same way that the toad is syphoning the life of the fig tree, the Spanish upper class is killing the lower class by selfishly hoarding all of Spain’s limited resources. It could also be argued that the toad is a symbol for social inequality. This is because the toad is used for its purpose and tossed aside, and left for dead, almost like the working class were in the war at the time the film was made. It is also evident that the toad mysteriously grows large from feeding on grubs. During the dinner scene featuring Vidal and other important people such as the priest, the bigwigs are eating fancy food whilst the rest of the families are rationed. This also emphasises the post war consensus and the way that the upper class pushed the needs of the lower class aside. This is also how the Captain pushes Ophelia and Carmen aside when his son was born, emphasising the patriarchal society and the post war conditions Spain lived in. The camera work and lighting during these scenes emphasise the significance as the change in lighting from warm to blue when the two worlds change imply the fantasy world is safer and warmer, despite the levels of danger being equal. 

When Ophelia completes her task and feeds the toad three moon stones, the toad dies and regurgitates a large sack. This imagery is reminiscent of afterbirth when the placenta comes out of the birth canal. Similarly, the tree could be representative of Ophelia’s brother. The tree looks a lot like fallopian tubes and like the tree, Ophelia's mother is slowly being killed by what lives inside it.  

The cinematography and mise en scene used in this scene creates meaning as the over the shoulder shot of the frog to Ophelia appears to be a warm hue of gold lighting, despite the events that are about to take place. This implies a sense of warmth and perhaps safety for Ophelia, even though she could potentially be in danger. Additionally, the long shot of Ophelia initially entering the tree emphasizes the intertextuality and arguably brings a sense of nostalgia, as it references the film ‘Alice in Wonderland’. The use of editing also adds to the meaning of the scene as the fast paced shots during the time of Ophelia going through the tree builds suspense and implies something is about to happen. 

Overall, it Is clear the cinematography and mise en scene used within this shot creates meaning. This is evident as it allows the audience to understand that the Toad and the tree are representations of Spanish society and summarize the reasoning behind Del Toro’s scrutinization. Additionally, the use of cinematography and mise en scene also allow the audience to grasp a clear perception of both the real and fantasy world, in order to create meaning and truly show the way Ophelia and the Spanish society lived.