The Orphanage (El Orfanato)

Ghost stories are always fun. And when they’re in a different language, it makes it even more intriguing as you try and look for signs of horror in someone else’s language. In The Orphanage, the Catalan flows melodically and the film is photographed with such beauty that it captures the solitude, secrets and threats of the film’s title orphanage situated somewhere on the Spanish coast. Laura (Belen Rueda in a fabulous performance) returns to the orphanage she was brought up in with her husband and son (the precocious Roger Princep) to run a home for mentally disturbed children. However, Simon soon starts talking with imaginary friends and slowly pulls Laura into a dark otherworld where things don’t seem right at all. The horror element of the film doesn’t make you jump out of the seat but it’s more of that slow, creepy, chilling build-up that suddenly engulfs you in its warped reality. There is one scene with a long corridor, a non-human apparition, guttural breathing sounds and a whistle that just freaked me out. Banking on atmosphere and rich characters, this is where the film’s triumph lies and it will disturb you. And unlike most cheap horror, the film also manages to put in a beautiful comment on life, death and what lies in between. This is a film that will make you gasp, think and cry. All that plus ghosts, creepy music and a compelling storyline. Watch it!

Cast Belen Rueda, Fernando Cayo, Roger Princep Director Juan Antonio Bayona  Runtime 100 minutes Opens 8 May

TEXT Priya Narayanan