31 Days of Horror Blu-rays: Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

"Eleven-year-old Ofelia comes face to face with the horrors of fascism when she and her pregnant mother are uprooted to the countryside, where her new stepfather, a sadistic captain in General Francisco Franco’s army, hunts down Republican guerrillas refusing to give up the fight. The violent reality in which Ofelia lives merges seamlessly with her fantastical interior world when she meets a faun in a decaying labyrinth and is set on a strange, mythic journey that is at once terrifying and beautiful. In his revisiting of this bloody period in Spanish history, del Toro creates a vivid depiction of the monstrosities of war infiltrating a child’s imagination and threatening the innocence of youth."

Pan's Labyrinth is a gorgeous, intense, and heartbreaking dark fairy tale that just may be Guillermo del Toro's best work, and The Criterion Collection is blessing us with a Special Edition of the film that not only boasts a brand new director-supervised 2K scan, but a slew of bonus features.

Special Features:

• Newly graded 2K digital master, supervised by director Guillermo del Toro, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray.
• Alternate 7.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray.
• Audio commentary by del Toro from 2007.
• New interview with del Toro by novelist Cornelia Funke about fairy tales, fantasy, and Pan’s Labyrinth.
• New interview with actor Doug Jones.
• Four 2007 making-of documentaries examining the characters, special effects, themes, and music of the film.
• Interactive director’s notebook.
• Footage of actor Ivana Baquero’s audition for the film.
• Animated comics featuring prequel stories for the film’s menagerie of creatures.
• Programs comparing selected production storyboards and del Toro’s thumbnail sketches with the final film; visual effects work for the Green Fairy; and elements of the film’s score.
• Trailers and TV spots.
• English subtitle translation approved by del Toro.
• PLUS: An essay by film critic Michael Atkinson.

Pan's Labyrinth is a stunning piece of cinema that deserves to be seen by Horror fans, or fans of movies in general. Add this disc to your collection and thank us later.