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The Orphanage
Fans of foreign language films and horror films in general should check out The Orphanage for something different.
Review by Sirus

One of the most profoundly painful things a person can go through is the loss of a child, either to death, or going missing. Laura (Belén Rueda) spent her childhood in a Spanish orphanage until she was adopted. She never knew the fate of the other children she left behind. Years have passed now and Laura has a husband and adopted son named Simón (Roger Príncep). She has so many fond memories of the years she spent in the orphanage that she searches for the building and buys it. She hopes to re-open the place but, meanwhile, she moves in with her husband and Simón. Leading up to the opening of the orphanage, Simón starts seeing children and talking to them. His parents dismiss them as imaginary friends that he will soon get over. On the day the orphanage is to be opened again, Simón mysteriously disappears. His disappearance launches a nationwide hunt for him. Laura refuses to accept that he is gone, so she searches everywhere she can. Her search ultimately leads to the truth behind the orphanage’s past and what happened to her son on that night.


Each member of the cast gives believable performances with Belén Rueda giving a fantastic performance. Laura’s character shows a profound amount of grief as she searches tirelessly for her son who she always believes is still alive. Juan Antonio Bayona’s directing creates some wonderfully shot scenes that soak the audience in the ambience. The soundtrack is perfectly ambient and gives each scene the perfect mood. The Orphanage is completely in Spanish with English subtitles like Pan’s Labyrinth before it. The subtitles are easy to read and timed well. While categorized as a horror film, the movie is also very sad. There are a few scenes of horror that will scare audiences but they are quite short. The scenes in between do a great job creating a feeling of dread and foreboding that makes the time leading up to the scary scenes just as unnerving. Even though The Orphanage touches on many themes that have been done before in similar types of Horror movies they are done well and the story leaves you with a satisfying conclusion. Fans of foreign language films and horror films in general should check out The Orphanage for something different.