The Orphanage

I'll admit I heard a lot of hype about this movie before watching it which may have unreasonably raised my expectations. I really like the slower ghost story type films, from the Changeling to the Others. Overall this was a decent addition to the genre without (for the most part) adding much or breaking much ground.

On the good side, this movie is well acted, and does a nice job of going through familiar motions. The director is certainly able to get suspense out of what really is a nice simply movie.

On the negative, the Orphanage really resurrects (no pun intended) a lot of familiar old ghost story cliches. Admittedly it does a nice job with them, but they're all there....the undead revenge plotline, the deformed child, the hidden part of the house, the creepy medium (why aren't mediums ever hip and laid-back), the kid who can sense the undead when adults can't, a bunch of folks who disbelieve the protagonist when she claims that the undead hauntings explain all the odd events. This really could have been The Changeling II (throw in a litte of the Others and the less science-fictiony elements of Poltergeist for good measure).

There is one twist near the end that nearly moved this movie up to at least 4-stars, but it gets ruined by an audience-satisfying denoumas (no clue how to spell that and too lazy to look it up). It's as if the screenwriters approached greatness, but blinked in the end.

Nonetheless, it's not a bad movie at all, delivers some nice chills, and probably will be entertaining if you enjoy this genre.

This movie was awesome. No gore, no nasty bloody scenes. But the fact is, I was drawn in pretty quickly, and despite the fact that it's not your "usual" horror flick or a "typical" scary movie, I was on the edge of my seat with the suspense, and the way the scenes were done. The main character was well-done, and quite well-acted. It draws you in more and more as the story goes, then comes together and answers all your questions at the end. Believe me, that's the cool part. You WON'T know what happens until the end. The film coloration, (much of it is done is grays and blues) only adds to the overall effect of this movie. I really enjoyed it, and I would recommend it for a nice dark rainy night when you watch it alone or with someone else. You WILL be riveted.

"The Orphanage" is a rare horror film whose strong emotions and believable motives make it a tear jerker as well as a supernatural thriller. Laura (Belen Rueda) spent half of her childhood in an orphanage on Spain's coast, before she was adopted. As an adult, she returns to the enormous and beautiful home, long since fallen into disuse, with her physician husband Carlos (Fernando Cayo) and 7-year-old son Simon (Roger Princep). The couple intend to re-open the establishment as a home for disabled children. But Simon's temperament is becoming belligerent, and he is fast accumulating imaginary friends. Then he disappears without a trace.

This is a ghost story, but, in spite of its supernatural elements, "The Orphanage" has a rigorous logic. I appreciated that, as horror films so often get sloppy with their narratives. The story is propelled forward by two strong emotions: fear of whatever lurks in the house and Laura's fierce maternal love. Laura takes the audience with her on frantic searches for clues, which give the film an action movie pace and emotional immediacy between the thoughtful lulls. At the halfway point, I thought the film lost its pacing and went off the rails until I realized that the film -and the audience's perception of it- pivots at that point. Then I was impressed by the well-conceived structure.

Director J.A. Bayona, writer Sergio G. Sanchez, cinematographer Oscar Faura, and editor Elena Ruiz, amazingly, are all working on their first feature film. Bayona harkens back to the best years of Hollywood genre filmmaking by creating the orphanage completely on a soundstage. It's a stunning set and a wonderful character in the movie. They go easy on the score and try to tell the story visually as much as possible. Belen Rueda makes us feel her anguish, desperation, and fear at the loss of her son. "The Orphanage" is top-notch gothic horror, comparable to the best psychological thriller/horror films that have come out of Asia in recent years. In Spanish with optional subtitles.

The DVD (New Line 2008): "When Laura Grew Up: Constructing the Orphanage" (16 min) interviews director, producers, writer, cast, et al about characters and themes, acting with children, the set, digital effects, and the score. "Tomas' Secret Room: The Filmmakers" (10 min) is a documentary in 5 parts about various aspects of production: the crew, the score, the orphanage, digitally effects, the title sequence. "Horror in the Unknown: Make-up Effects" (9 min) interviews the make-up artists about Tomas, Laura's leg, and Begnina's make-up. In "Rehearsal Studio: Cast Auditions and Table Read" (3 min), the director talks about working with the actors. There are 6 Still Galleries of 198 sketches and photos. "Marketing Campaign" includes 2 Spanish trailers, 2 US trailers, and 12 posters. Subtitles for the film are available in English and Spanish.

I absolutely was thirlled, moved and struck deeply by this film. The sense of horror and suspense is palpable, I found myself at the edge of my seat. Ultimately, however, it is a story of love and that part of the story stayed with me the most. It is a children's Grimm's Fairy tale of the highest order. A breaks the mold of horror film convention is so many ways as to make it one of the most original stories I've seen to date. Reminiscent of Del Torro's Pan's Labyrinth.

A must for the horror fan.

I didn't have high expectations going into this movie despite the reviews (I wasn't very smitten with Pan's Labyrinth and thought this could be a similar experience) but I was in for a startling surprise.

The Orphanage has a simple story, no convoluted plot or superfluous characters to weigh it down. I felt it was a very clean and direct approach and appreciated that. I also felt a sense of "newness" about the film, as if it was different from all the horror flicks that are churning out nowadays - and it is different when compared to some of the trash torture porn which seems to dominate the market. The movie doesn't rely on gore or cheap thrills but builds the tense atmosphere slowly and steadily until the climax through powerful use of acting, lighting and camera work.

You may or may not see the end coming. For me, it wasn't a big surprise, I felt it had been building to this outcome for some time. However, it was deeply touching and despite the sheer horror and tragedy there was as underlying feeling that things were going to be OK. Not better than they were, but still OK. Normally these types of movies end on either a severe note of tragedy or a gimmicky bandaid-type magic ending to wrap themselves up. The feeling I had at the end of the film was the real twist for me, as it was greatly unexpected that a movie such as this would touch me so strongly.

I highly recommend.