Labrynth

Rated PG

Catholic-ometer: 3 of 5

Enjoyability: 4.5 of 5

Once upon a time, there was a decade called the 1980s.  In that decade, a number of fantasy movies were released.  They were stylish and thrilling, with good humor and likable characters, and they delivered moods well.  The downside was that no matter how hard they tried, they could never seem to tell a story all the way through.  Time after time, they either launched too quickly into the main plot without giving the characters any chance to shine on their own, or resolved the main problem too quickly, or in a confusing or unsatisfying way.  Sometimes, the main villain would end the film with a speech that made no sense, and half the time, the entire premise of the film seemed to make very little sense until one spent about an hour pondering over it, and then, one had to wonder just why the director couldn't have been a little clearer about just what was really going on.

Seriously, though.  Labrynth is clearly one such movie.  It's as much a metaphor as it is a story, and the characters and situations can get very confusing if you don't view them in that way.

I kid 80s movies, though.  Some actually did take the time to explain why they ended the way they did, but not many (the Princess Bride and the Neverending Story being perhaps the best examples.)  Labrynth, in some ways, is midway between those films and the likes of "Legend," one of the most head-scratching films I've ever seen in my life (though I do remember enjoying it somewhat.)

Sarah is something that was very rare in the 80s; a girl who's utterly obsessed with other-world fantasy stories.  She even cosplays as an adventurer in a secluded section of her neighborhood.  However, every week, her parents force her to baby-sit her baby brother, who repeatedly gets on her nerves.  Eventually, she wishes that the goblins would come and take him away.  They do.

The goblins, led by a tall, dashing goblin king named Jareth, seize the child and carry him back to the castle in the center of the Labrynth, and it's up to Sarah to solve the puzzles of the Labrynth, get into the castle, and face off against the goblin king for the fate of her baby brother.  Along the way, she makes friends, meets strange creatures, learns life lessons, etc...  Her journey, in fact, is so bizarre and episodic that it could be compared with Alice in Wonderland.

The morals in the film come in two types; "minor," and "major."  The difference is that some moral lessons (minor) only last one or two scenes, while others (major) can be inferred from the movie as a whole.

The minor lessons, on average, are a mixed bag, ranging from things that are -truly- moral, like forgiveness and faithfulness, to issues of mere good manners, like asking permission.  However, none of them, at least, -encourage- immorality, so on the whole, I'd say I was impressed.

With regard to the major lessons of the film, I think some mistakes have been made on the part of certain past reviewers.  Some reviewers seem to assume that the point of the film was supposed to be; Sarah needs to recognize that her fantasies aren't as important as the real people she knows.  I don't believe that at all.  If they'd wanted that to be the moral of the story, it easily could have been.  My view of the major moral of the movie is this.

"We all have things we don't need, which we could easily give up for the sake of others, and which we should, because mere possessions aren't as important as people.  However, don't worry.  Just because you sacrifice to help people doesn't mean you need to give up your dreams.  In fact, you may find them being fulfilled more often if you focus on helping others."

I think you'll find that if this -is- the moral of the movie, it fulfills it quite well, and for me, as a Christian, I consider this a better moral than "grow up and don't want odd or supernatural things anymore."  We're -supposed- to want things to be different than they are in this life.  That's half of the point.  There's also something hauntingly-relevant about a movie where the main character is a female protagonist who initially doesn't want a baby, but eventually realizes what a mistake it is to get rid of him.

Jareth is a charming villain, Sarah is a likable protagonist, and the other characters never really get annoying.  The sets, paintings, special effects and so on all look pretty nice, and the musical numbers are delightful; especially "magic dance."

I think the one exception to this generally-good graphics and sound quality is the "fire dance" segment, where the green screen effects are pretty terrible, and the song is somewhat ruined by the fact that you can barely hear what they're singing.  Still, even that's somewhat enjoyable to watch.

The film itself is -very- high-fantasy, and in genre, is a bit of a cross between horror and comedy.  There's a little rough language, but not often.  There are points where the imagery is truly grotesque and terrifying, and yet, there's just enough levity to keep things from being too intense.  Younger viewers will probably still be scared, though, because there's plenty to scare them.  Even I got a few chills at some points in the film, because it tickles so many of those little, irrational horrors we all still have from when we were kids, like suddenly falling into a hole, normal things coming to life and talking, creepy faces uttering menacing warnings from inside walls, and doors not leading where they're supposed to.  All of these things creep us out a little, even though we know they don't really happen.

Overall, I really enjoyed this film.  It's not specifically-Christian, but neither is it evil or determined to tear away at our moral fiber, like so many modern movies.  It was an overall fun movie about a journey through a dark fantasy world where things don't make sense, with some good laughs, good visuals, good scares and good times, and I can't really ask for more than that.