The Orphanage

© Picturehouse

The Orphanage is a Spanish horror film from director Juan Antonio Bayona. Belen Rueda plays Laura, a woman that returns to her childhood orphanage (no longer so) with her husband and adopted child Simon. Her plan is to run her own organization helping special children with her husband played by Fernando Cayo. Her plans, however, change when Simon goes missing under peculiar circumstances. Perhaps even supernatural. Simon had been talking of imaginary friends, but certain clues suggest they were not imaginary.

Unlike the typical Hollywood horror, The Orphanage shows restraint and only interrupts the suspense with a scare at the right time. And suspenseful it is. Bayona creates the tone very quickly and never lets go. A rare eerie ghost story that pleases us with each surprise. Most films of it's kind lose their effect during revealing plot points whereas The Orphanage gets better. In fact, the movie keeps getting better until it's final frame (which is very memorable). The film is also an amazing accomplishment for not being single-minded. By this I mean the film makers are smart enough to know a story such as this needs to be played as a realistic drama so that we can accept it and give it a chance as a great movie, not just a great horror. The characters are great and the story, even ignoring the fantasy, is top-notch. Although we are kept interested by anticipating whats around the next corner, we also care just as much about the fate of the characters. An instant classic, and a serious candidate for foreign film of the year.