L'Orphelinat

Attended the first commercial screening of The Orphanage (El Orfanato) last night at FrightFest, London.

Juan Antonio Bayona and writer Sergio G. Sanchez have delivered something really special for their first feature.

I have never jumped out of my seat like I did last night, nor my partner, nor most of the audience it seemed. Apart from the terrific scares, there are solid performances from the whole cast, stunning cinematography, and the editing is flawless. If I had to criticise one element, it is that the music swells just a little too much a couple of times, but it is a good score nonetheless.

See this one at the cinema.

I went into a screening of this today knowing only that it was about a woman who buys the home she lived in as an orphaned child, planning to open it to other orphans, that it mixed fantasy and reality, and that Guillermo del Toro of 'Pan's Labyrinth' had a hand in it. I didn't have any expectations. Even if I did, I certainly not have expected what I got. 'El Orfanato' surprised me first in successfully thrilling me with its surface, and surprised me again in how deeply it moved me with its core.

When Laura (the marvelous Belén Rueda) moves back into the house that used to be the orphanage she lived in as a girl, she is thirty-seven, married, and she and her husband have adopted a son - Simón, a little boy with HIV who doesn't know that he's terminally ill or adopted. Simón is wildly creative - he has several imaginary friends and a penchant for treasure hunts, mind games, and the story of Peter Pan. One day shortly after a mysterious visit from a social worker and Simón's revelation that he knows the truth about his adoption and illness, Simón disappears. The rest of the film follows Laura's desperate search for her son as she comes to terms with her loss and her own past as well.

Screenwriter Sergio G. Sánchez does a masterful job of balancing the thriller with the drama. Laura's attempts to connect with everything that haunts her and her home are darkly touching, though slightly psychologically twisted. The acting is strong, and the directing, editing, cinematography, and music all work together well. Some of the sound effects - the constant creaking, wind blowing, etc. - got wearisome as the film went on, and some of the thrills were a little cheap - I won't ruin it for anyone by revealing them - though, admittedly, they were effective all the same. The story dragged a little towards the end and during the scene with the medium - cutting it just a little shorter might have been equally as effective and easier on the viewer.

Bottom line: even if you don't like "scary" movies (like me), you'll probably still appreciate and enjoy the more thrilling aspects. If you're a horror flick buff, you'll probably find some of the thriller elements a little tired and overdone. Either way, it's still worth seeing - the exploration of Laura's heart and mind are both lovely and tragic to behold, and though the film is morbid, it is beautiful as well.

Laura (Belen Rueda) returns to the orphanage she spent time in as a child with her husband Carlos (Fernando Cayo) and little boy Simon (Roger Princep) in hopes of re-establishing it as seaside retreat for children with disabilities only to find there may be some former residents who never left. In Juan Antonio Bayona's tightly wound "The Orphanage" nothing is as it seems and child's play takes on sinister overtones.

Bayona belongs to this new wave of Spanish-language directors (most notably Del Torro and Amenabar) who excel when it comes to creating moody atmospheric tales of the supernatural with Catholic overtones. Whereas "Pan's Labyrinth" took a dark fantasy approach to a Passion Play, "The Orphanage" is closer to the classic haunted house themes of "The Others" as it attempts to give a sentimental view of life after death. Be warned, "The Orphanage" is often more sad than scary, and those not familiar with Catholic mysticism might find things a bit hard to believe. As goes the film's mantra...Believe, Then You Will See. Those with the patience and the heart will be greatly rewarded as the audience doesn't necessarily have to Believe to relate to the characters who do.

Working from refined "less is more" psychological horror templates, Bayona delivers the formulaic goods. There will be a simplistic but heartfelt exploration of grief. There will be allusions to classic literature (in this case a very nicely done "Peter Pan" as Catholic allegory motif). There will be uncovering dark secrets from the past. There will be precocious children with spooky imaginary friends. There will be creaking set designs and manipulative sound effects to create "gotcha!" moments. There will be a creepy medium (an excellent Geraldine Chaplin) brought in for a séance. And there will be a twist at the end.

Thankfully, there is also a great performance from Belen Rueda as Laura. She gives a compelling portrayal of a woman devoured by her loss and achingly desperate for the truth no matter how horrific that truth might be. One must have a cold heart not to find sympathy with her, and even the most hardened audience member will find it hard not to feel that stray tear form in the corner of their trembling eye when all is revealed. "The Orphanage" offers nothing terribly new, but sometimes the same old ghost story presented in a beautiful way makes for the best type of cold-rainy-day entertainment.

This film is less like a traditional horror movie and more of a drama/mystery with strong supernatural elements. The setup is that Laura, who once lived at an orphanage, returns to the orphanage with her husband and son to start it up again as a place for special needs children. Of course, it all seems simple, but there are mysteries abound in this story and the revelations trickle in over the course of the tale.

The film isn't particularly frightening, although it has a couple of jumpy moments. Rather than focusing on creating an atmosphere of fear, instead it works on drawing up sympathy for Laura's plight as events transpire against her and her family and the past comes back to haunt her. It's an interesting meditation on loss as well that had a wonderful potential to straddle the line between real-world and supernatural (but don't worry folks, it doesn't--it's firmly supernatural and you know it from early on). Nonetheless, that you could imagine this film working even if the supernatural elements were just in Laura's mind and that's a pretty good thing for the drama.

The technical aspects of the film are all sound (although I noticed a couple of background gaffs, but I think you'd have to look for them), with clear direction, capable lensing and design. The actors all do a good job of rendering their characters (children fare believably enough) and Belen Rueda carries the film well as the central protagonist. The story itself doesn't reach any great depths, but unraveling the mystery with the film is enjoyable.

It's nothing stunning, but in the world of horror films, it easily stands a shoulder above the regular flotsam that the genre tends to churn out. At that, it's no terrible film and could be recommended if you're looking for a relatively intelligent and well composed supernatural horror-type film. Just don't expect bloodbaths and constant shocks. 7/10.

I saw this at the Frightfest and its AMAZING, did the previous reviewer even see it? No real shocks!!, I've never seen a cinema jump like the audience at Frightfest for this film. I'm kind of tempted to name the shocks but I wont. Its such a stunningly made film, creepy, atmospheric, shocking, great story, beautifully directed, the main woman is incredible. I was never really sure if it was supernatural or psychological, but as it reveals...wow, its excellent. Its so well done I cant write more without giving stuff away, but go and see it. I was expecting a low rent " pan's Labyrinth " but I think it might be even better than PL, though very different. Best film i've seen in ages