The Orphanage "El Orfanato"

I almost don't know what to say about The Orphanage, but I'll give it a go.

This Spanish movie, more of a chiller than a horror film, tells the story of a woman who brings her young family to live in the orphanage she grew up in. Her plan is to re-open the place with the hope of providing a loving environment for a new generation of orphans. All seems to be going well for them as they prepare the place, but their adopted son begins to suffer as he's left to compete for their attention. He starts to spend more and more time playing with his invisible friends and his seriousness about them starts to worry the adults.

So far, so good. The adults, played by Belén Rueda and Fernando Cayo, are both convincing enough and their son Simón, played by Roger Príncep, is credible. The scene is set for a decent bit of spooky cinema...

...and that's when it all gets so bog standard that you want to sigh. Let's have a little list of horror clichés that they manage to fit in:

• Child with sack over head - check
  
• Child that seems a bit too serious - check
  
• Playground roundabout that turns on its own - check
  
• Nobody taking the main character's concerns seriously - check
  
• Nasty old lady who keeps turning up - check
  
• Empty old house with plenty of dark corners - check
  
• Paranormal investigators - check
  
• Creepy dolls that no child would ever want to play with - check
  
• Things that go bump in the night - check
  

I could go on all day, but I am sure the point's been made. The Orphanage doesn't shy away from re-using any tired old tricks or symbolism so over-used that it's become boring. OK, the story keeps going and events that seemed pointless during the film are tidied up neatly by the end. In fact, it did have some good twists and turns, but they were swamped by the clichés and when the credits rolled I couldn't help thinking the plot had gone on for about ten minutes too long or that I wouldn't be recommending it to anyone I liked.

Overall: meh.

The Orphanage