Wow. Easily one of the best horror films of the 21st century. What a film, I'm pretty speechless right now. So spooky and creepy. I seriously had shivers going up my spine several times throughout the movie because of how genuinely creeped out I was.

I'm really starting to have my doubts that J. A. Bayona had absolutely anything to do with Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

"Seeing is not believing. It's the other way around. Believe, and you will see." -Aurora,

-Hooptober 5.0 (Film 27 of 33): boxd.it/23f1e

A woman, raised in an orphanage, returns with her husband and adopted son to the orphanage of her childhood. Her goal is to reopen the orphanage but soon her son disappears after talking to "imaginary" friends. Panic and horror ensues.

This movie is pretty close to perfection and I would recommend it to anyone, including people that normally dislike horror. The story is well-told, the acting is exceptional, the tone is very creepy but occasionally gives you moments to breath and recommit. It's great. I think if the film had simply done a bit more to ground the relationship between the mother and Simon, before he disappears, I would've rated this 5 stars.

Film 15 of 26 for 2018 A-Z Horror Marathon

Might be the only horror film I've ever seen that continues to be genuinely frightening but also make me tear up at the end every time

This is only produced by Del Toro but it's clear that Bayona shares his love for film and for telling a story. It has his heart all over it. It's bleak and upsetting but hopeful, bittersweet, and satisfying all at the same time

Creepy good.

Hooptober: Night 19

"One. Two. Three. Toca la pared."

I found this movie rather emotionally distant for a film about a mother's bond with her child despite the solid acting. We don't really know much about anyone, so it's the more general mother-child bond that drives the movie, and that wasn't really enough for me to connect with. Ghost hunters are among my least favorite tropes, so that interlude did little for me. The makeup effects were fantastic, and the ending before the actual ending was clever if a little deceitful. Ultimately, it wasn't for me, but I get the appeal.

I think I can admit to overrating this 10+ years ago because of subtitles, Geraldine Chaplin, and a mostly great ending (tainted only by the husband, a transparent plot device throughout the film). Comes close to equating special-needs children with ghouls, but pulls away from gross exploitation by the end. Like so many movies' Precocious Children, Simón reveals the filmmakers' basic misunderstanding of childhood, though Bayona and Sánchez wisely condemn our predisposition for cruelty.

I'm not much of a fan of ghost stories, but this was really well told. It really is a fairy tale that is told with horror elements. Cut out the jumpscares and change the music and you have a somber fantasy story. I think it may have worked even better as that, since a lot of the horror elements were really manufactured. There is never any real danger or violence in this story, it just is a little creepy. You can definitely see why Guillermo Del Toro was involved, because it is right up his alley stylistically.

31 Days of Horror, #19

The problem with double billing a couple of movies, is that if I liked one of them more, I struggle to remember the other one very clearly. I watched The Devil's Backbone right after this which spoke to me more than The Orphanage - but I did still really like this. I didn't find it particularly scary, but the direction is exquisite and clever (the '1, 2, 3' game played in the third act is beautifully tense). It's a film that's hard not to feel deeply, thanks to an incredible performance from Belen Rueda, and a story that painfully and soberly addresses the agony of loss. An immaculate little ghost story.

I'm really starting to have my doubts that J. A. Bayona had absolutely anything to do with Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

Beautiful , in every way.

not at all what i expected and barely a horror film but very touching nonetheless

13/31 october marathon