The Orphanage (Blu-ray)

If there is one director who is hot right now it is Guillermo Del Toro. After coming off the critical success of 'Pan's Labyrinth' he has just made 'Hellboy 2' possibly one of the best sequels ever and also a box office hit. To make things even more impressive his next project is an adaptation of 'The Hobbit' working alongside Peter Jackson the man behind the 'Lord of the Rings' adaptations. With great power comes great responsibility and unlike many directors Del Toro has decided to use his new found success to help others. He has created a brand called Guillermo Del Toro Presents where he hopes to highlight the best on young talent from across the world. The first ...  Read the complete review

Another rental from lovefilm and this week it was The Orphange on Blu-ray. Chosen by my husband so I had no idea that this would be a spanish film with English subtitles so as we began to watch I was a little apprehensive that I would not enjoy the film and would struggle to follow whilst watching the subtitles, but needless to say the Orphanage was one of the best films I have seen this year. ~*~The Storyline~*~ The Good Shepherd Orphanage holds many memories for Laura, played by Belen Ruedi. As an orphan Laura spent most oher the early part of her life being nurtured by the affectionate staff and the other orphans who had grown to be her brother ...  Read the complete review

As I previously reviewed the standard DVD of 'The Orphanage', and having watched the blu-ray edition last night, I have decided to review the high-definition version of this Spanish psychological horror. Produced by Guillermo Del Toro, and directed by Juan Antonio Bayona, 'El Orfanato' (Spanish title) is a chilling tale about a woman named Laura (Belén Rueda) who returns to the orphanage she attended as a child, with a plan to reopen it as a home for special children. Living with her husband Carlos (Fernando Cayo) and young son Simon (Roger Príncep) who is HIV positive, Laura quickly realises all is not what it seems in the building which they now ...  Read the complete review

Dark, scary, edge of your seat horror with a really moving and emotional storyline, The Orphanage is the story of a mother who returns with her family to the orphanage where she spent time as a child. The sudden and mysterious disappearance of her son in the old house sets off a frantic search to recover him when she begins to believe that his imaginary friends were somehow to blame for his vanishment. Classic elements of traditional horror are given a new twist in this masterpiece, produced by the director of the equally fantastic Pan's Labyrinth. There were times when I almost rolled my eyes at the obvious 'horror movie moments' (a woman alone in an empty ...  Read the complete review

Finally a good horror movie! Before you read on: some people do not like foreign movies with subtitles. Although the title of this movie is in English the movie itself is in Spanish and has English subtitles! No dubbing available! HOWEVER, this is one of the best movies I have seen for a while. (And i really watch a lot of dvds!!!). Finally there is a really dark, creepy horror film again. In parts it is really scary and the atmosphere the movie builds up is awsome. The plot A couple moves into an old mansion which used to be an orphanage with their young son. The son was adopted from an orphanage himself. After some ...  Read the complete review