Good, Creepy, Old-School Horror. BUT... You need to be able to suspend disbelief and enjoy some Fantasy elements in your Horror...

Rating: 7/10 (20 July 2013)

I really LOVE Guillermo Del Toro. THAT guy is truly talented. So, anytime I see where he has ANYTHING to do with a film, I definitely want to check it out. One VERY strong film that he produced recently was 'THE ORPHANAGE' which was excellent.
This one though I would say falls somewhat short of that. It IS a good Horror film, but a Horror film with a strong Retro - Old School, low key style. Firstly, it IS indeed a PG-13, so if you are one of these hard core, Luv-2-see-m-tortured-wid-Lotz-of-blud, forget it. Secondly, and this is VERY important if you are reading this to determine whether you will like this film or not. You will only enjoy this movie IF you enjoy a fairly strong Fantasy element AND if you are able to submerse yourself into Supernatural stories. Sooooo... if you are one of these people who like there Horror 'Realistic' or true to life, you won't like it...
The look and mood of the film is excellent. The cinematography and the direction are very well done. I can see why this guy caught Guillermo's attention. The style, especially towards the end, is VERY Del Toro-esque. This is almost like a faerie tale in a way. Thus, why I am saying that you really DO have to like Fantasy elements in your Horror in order to enjoy this film. If not, you are simply going to be bored, find it unbelievable, be rolling your eyes, and then you'll come here and write how lousy the film is. So, that is why I am saying it is important whether you like that element in your Horror films or not.
The acting is excellent. At first, I didn't think I was gonna like the lead woman because I thought 'Oh, here we go with the Punk Chick cliché' But, I was surprised that as the film went on, I had to admire her subtle adaptation to the situation and her versatility. I looked up the actress here on IMDb and I didn't even RECOGNIZE her!
Also, the children do a superb job. If you like Fantasy / Horror concerning children (not EVIL Killer children, simply about children) then you will certainly appreciate the excellent job done here by them. I was AMAZED at the youngest one, because she had to express so many primitive emotions and reactions and she did them in an amazingly believable way! Usually with a child actor this young, I would expect her to come across as too much, over the top, and VERY unconvincing. But, this little girl was frigg'n AWESOME and I found myself just sitting here, stunned with how damn good she was. She FAR overshadowed the older girl, although her performance was fine too.
So, all in all, YES, this is a very well made and effective Horror film IF you like lighter, more low key Horror with some Fantasy elements included. You also have to be rather forgiving of some of the ghostly CG effects, because the story calls for them. So, if you are one to say 'GEEZ, what CHEEEEEEZY CG crap!' then that may diminish your enjoyment of the movie. YES, there are a lot of 'jump-scares', but they are mostly effective and had me changing my pants several times...