This beautifully structured superior genre film has much in common with The Innocents, The Others or the original The Haunting. Spending most of its time creating character and atmosphere it largely eschews violence or cheap shocks in favour of nerve-shredding suspense.
Produced by Guillermo Del Toro, it tells the story of a young mother, Laura, and her husband Carlos, who together purchase an ancient, long-abandoned orphanage. But on the same day Laura opens it to newcomers, her own son mysteriously goes missing.
Essentially a haunted house film, The Orphanage is so skilfully made in every department that it transcends its influences to become not just a scary movie but a riveting, tremendously powerful psychological thriller investigating themes of parental guilt and anxiety.
