It was about time for a scary movie. I had been watching all of these weird films but I had yet to delve into the horror films. It takes me a bit to watch a horror film because of all the work I did with Japanese horror during my graduate work. Most of the films are full of clichés and are unoriginal. I am glad that the buzz behind The Orphanage pushed me to watch it. It can’t hurt that Guillermo del Toro is the producer. I admit I was creeped out a bit, but then let down.
The film revolves around an orphanage, duh. One of the orphans that left the house, Laura (Belén Rueda) buys the house in order to open her own home for special needs children. She brings along her son Simón (Roger Príncep) and her husband Carlos (Fernando Cayo). While at first we have just creepy sounds, soon Simón’s invisible friends increase in number. Certain mysteries are uncovered leading to Laura revisiting her history with the orphanage. It’s hard to go into detail because the plot works more like a thriller. Each little piece of story discovered adds to the tension, culminating in an unexpected end. This was the let down part of the narrative. I really wanted more out of the ending. While some will view it as a great end, I hate the idea that a horror film has to end in a certain way. I give the film credit for taking a chance, but I personally was expecting more.
I couldn’t help but feel like the film was an exercise in how easy it is to scare the crap out of someone if you just establish the right setting. There really are few parts in the film that are outright scary, but you find yourself on the edge of your seat just waiting. Waiting for something hidden in the orphanage. I’m sure this film scared many viewers, I just have a hard time really being scared by any film. I do like the fact that the film does not rely on those jump out and Boo! moments that so many horror films use to quickly scare a viewer. The Orphanage realizes that the waiting and the shadows are enough to keep blood pressures rising.
The Orphanage does prove that foreign horror films are still better right now that American ones. While we have Saw IV and Hostel 2, fairly original films are being made across the world that do not rely on gore and torture porn. Now don’t get me wrong, The Orphanage is not the most original film ever made, but it does not have a formulaic feel. Perhaps this is why I have yet to watch many new American horror films, I can’t stomach watching a sequel to a bad film or a horribly culturally inaccurate remake of a Japanese horror film. At the least The Orphanage has something fresh to offer the horror genre.
While I recommend watching The Orphange, it is not one of my favorites. I really like the approach but I think many filmmakers could make an orphanage creepy. The acting is decent, if not a bit too melodramatic at moments (not to take away from Belén Rueda, she is very attractive and much better than many other female roles in horror films). This may be due to the film trying to be a bit more than a horror film. I would rather watch this film than any other horror offerings right now because at least there is some substance to the film. The Orphanage provides us with a nice scare and a decent effort at transcending your typical horror film (even if the effort wasn’t fully realized).
