Ofelia is a young girl who recently lost her father. Her mother has fallen for, married, and become impregnated by El Capitan, a cruel leader. This takes place is 1944 during a terrible war. Now that her mother is close to giving birth, El Capitan has decided to move them closer to him in his fortress. On their way to this fortress, Ofelia's mother gets sick and they have to pull the car over in the forest. While there, Ofelia encounters a magical presence. At this point, we see the beginning of two simultaneous stories: the "real" world and the fantasy world.
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Once at the fortress, Ofelia meets one of the maids named Mercedes who is secretly part of the rebellion against El Capitan. As Ofelia's mother gets more ill, Mercedes and Ofelia become closer. When Ofelia is alone, she is visited by a magical faun who tells her that she is really a princess and that she must complete 3 dangerous tasks in order to fulfill her destiny. Each time she completes a task, she seems to upset her new stepfather. The faun even tells her how to heal her mother with a root. She follows his directions and it starts to work--until El Capitan finds the root and destroys it. Ofelia's mother has to have an emergency delivery.
Ofelia has to decide between her fantasy and the real world.
Best part of story, including ending:
This was both heartbreaking and empowering. This movie spoke to the type of person I want to be.
Best scene in story:
My favorite scene is when Mercedes stands up to El Capitan.
Opinion about the main character:
I like (love) that she is willing to sacrifice everything to do what is right.
