Things that go bump in the night. The big haunted house. Demonic children. And a creepy clown mask. The Orphanage, the directorial debut from Juan Antonia Bayona, relies on these and other classic horror staples to create its numerous scares. Though the film is less than innovative, its use of suspense and impeccable sound editing--and not violence or special effects--give it the welcome feeling of a throwback in this moment when gory torture porns continue to flood the box office.
The Orphanage tells the story of Laura (Belen Rueda), who moves to the Spanish countryside with her husband Carlos (Fernando Cayo) and young, adopted son Simon. There she aims to start a home for disabled children in the former orphanage where she was raised 30 year ago. Simon, played by Roger Princeps, who captures the sincere curiosity of a child in a beautiful, understated performance, is HIV positive and Laura lives with the constant fear of losing her beloved boy. Her nightmare comes early when Simon suddenly disappears and from there Rueda's gutsy, charged performance propels the film. Searching desperately for answers, Laura comes to believe that children's spirits inhabiting her home have taken Simon, and a kooky medium (Is there any other kind?), played by Geraldine Chaplin, validates her suspicions.
The film has been compared with Guillermo Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth. While both films share the theme of the thin line between fantasy (and the supernatural) and reality, the association likely has more to do with Del Toro's producing credit The Orphanage. Whereas Pan's Labyrinth exploded with singular creative vision, The Orphanage often feels like well worn territory, despite its uniqueness in today's horror field. It borrows liberally from its inspirations (The Others, The Innocents, and numerous others) without ever commenting on them, and never transcends its status as a genre film, albeit a very good one.
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