The Orphanage (El Orfanato)
Directed by Juan Antonio Bayona.
The Orphanage is a suspense/creepy/ghost film by Guillermo Del Toro, director of Pan's Labyrinth, The Three Burials of Melquiadis Estrada, Hellboy and Blade 2. It follows a woman who, with help of her husband, hopes of reopening the orphanage where she spent her childhood as a place for kids with special needs. Some uninvited guests arrive and before she knows it she is forced to play games to try and recover her son.
Guillermo Del Toro tends to be notorious for producing good films that combine setting, good special effects and creepy costumes to produce a very creepy atmosphere. The Orphanage relies less upon special effects and more upon atmosphere and setting for this ghost tale. The film is quite creepy from the opening credits and carries throughout. There are some parallels in this film with Pan's Labyrinth that I will not spoil here, suffice to say that if you did enjoy Pan's Labyrinth then The Orphanage won't let you down. This film rises well above the typical standard of films in the creepy/scary genre. See it now before some-one makes a shoddy remake starring Buffy!
4/5 Stars
Michael Hill
