20 Years Later, Pan’s Labyrinth Is Coming Back To Theaters
Guillermo del Toro’s masterpiece is also getting a big upgrade.
Last year, director Guillermo del Toro unveiled the film that some have dubbed his magnum opus. Frankenstein is a culmination of the filmmaker’s greatest loves — and some of del Toro’s shakier habits — so the acclaim is apt. But 20 years ago, del Toro delivered the film that’s still widely considered his very best. If nothing else, it certainly put him on the map: though he’d begun to cross into the mainstream with the one-two punch of Blade II and Hellboy, it was Pan’s Labyrinth that made his status as a master storyteller undeniable.
If the importance of Pan’s Labyrinth is still up for debate, doubts will likely be put to rest when the film returns to theaters this October. Just as del Toro’s unsung romance, Crimson Peak, enjoyed a 4K restoration in 2024, Pan’s Labyrinth is getting a huge upgrade for its anniversary. Not only are Cineverse and Fathom Events teaming up to bring it back to the big screen, but del Toro has been working on a 4K restoration of his horror masterpiece. When it heads back to theaters this time, it’ll be available in 3D and HDR formats.
Pan’s Labyrinth follows Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), a young girl who uses fantasies to escape her dark reality in fascist Spain. When she and her very-pregnant mother (Ariadna Gil) move to the country estate of Captain Vidal (Sergi López), Ofelia’s new stepfather delivers a crash course in the cruelty that’s taken over their nation. While the Francoist dictatorship works to root out rebels, Ofelia discovers a hidden world straight out of a fairytale.
Deep within an ancient labyrinth, Ofelia meets a kindly Faun who believes that she’s the reincarnated spirit of a long-lost princess. According to legend, this princess lost both her memory and her immortality when she abandoned the underworld for the human realm, but not all hope is lost. Ofelia can regain her immortality and reunite with her true family; all she has to do is perform the three tasks the Faun sets before her. The question of whether Ofelia’s odyssey is truly happening or a new reality built to comfort our heroine is mostly open-ended — judge for yourself when you head to the theater.
It’s that seed of doubt (or, optimistically, the desire to believe), alongside breathtaking practical effects and creature design, that helps the tragic beats of Pan’s Labyrinth go down easier. Short of the Oscar-winning Shape of Water, it’s by far del Toro’s best-realized story. Its return to theaters is more than warranted, as fans old and new will get the chance to experience it in a new way.
