Wrong, wrong, wrong Christian. The film was highly imaginative, as was the book. The kid author has a highly extensive vocabulary which he put to good use, albeit with only the perceptions of a teenage boy (character development and depth were, admittedly, lacking). Plus, he was homeschooled, by which the creativity spawned from the lack of conformity and non-village mentality is an affront to most socialists (as they might naturally find some way to attack that which was not created by the state).
Patrick Doyle does an excellent job with a fully rousing adventure score. This is totally appropriate for the genre, as fantasy is our absolute means of escapism (for which I consider Pan's Labyrinth a crime against nature). So no, I don't abide the reviews of folks who are screaming to the world, "We're all doomed and Hollywood comes out with this light-hearted stuff?!"
In dark times, I'll take virtue and high spirits over gloom and cynism any day of the week!