seeing is believing... or just the opposite...

Rating: 10/10 (31 May 2009)

Many movies inhere some kind of "duality" of meaning. There's what you see... and there's also what lies beyond. "El orfanato" (2007) is a picture successfully playing with this matter, putting it into focus.
While watching it you'll start to wonder... will there be some real explanation... or something else. Is the protagonist losing her mind... or is she right. What happened... and why ! Are you willing to believe in ghosts ? Or are you seeking for the real ? Either way you'll be able to experience this interesting Spanish/Mexican picture by J.A. Bayona in a different way !
The second fascinating thing to strike me in a positive way was the terrific interplay of sound, music and images. A frightening fusion. Music suddenly stops...voices appear...sounds... after a while I wasn't all too sure any more whether the sound was coming from the movie... or from outside... not a nice experience during a movie like this one ;).
So after all I clearly recommend "El orfanato". It's a wonderfully written, acted, visualized and directed deeply frightening horror drama. Perhaps one of the best of its kind and if you enjoyed "The Others" I'm guessing you'll enjoy that one too !