Director: J.A. Bonya
Genre: Horror
Country of Origin: Spain
Year: 2007
Rating: R
Time: 105 minutes
Rating: 4/5
El Orfanato is a 2007 Spanish horror film directed by J.A. Bonya and produced by Guillermo del Toro of Pan's Labyrinth fame. It stars Belén Rueda as Laura, a once orphaned child, now a wife and mother who purchases the old orphanage where she grew up. Her dream to create a new school becomes an unsettling nightmare when her son befriends a mysterious child who wears a sack mask and soon causes her own son's disappearance. It's up to her to uncover the mystery of the orphanage in order to find her son.
What I truly enjoyed about this film is how it stands out against most traditional American horror films. Like most paranormal films, it derives elements of classic ghost stories (haunted orphanage, creepy children, having nobody believe in your claims, etc) but manages to blend it with themes of childhood, loss, and even nihilism.While it does have some frightening scenes, it doesn't rely too much on gore to scare the audiences but rather lets the tense atmosphere of the film play its own role. It also relies of the adult parental fear of losing children, creating a mixture of both horror and tragedy. The film becomes more than just your average ghost film, it becomes much more bittersweet. Even though El Orfanato is of Spanish origin, this film became successful in many Latin American countries and I felt it was worthy being mentioned in the blog in special honor. For those who don't enjoy watching films with subtitles, don't fret. Guillermo del Toro announced an American remake is in plan some time in the future with Mark Pellington as director.
Trailer:
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