By Emilia Benton

It’s likely that many Americans have been anxious to see a horror film containing creativity and originality. Lucky for us, from Spain comes “The Orphanage,” a chilling ghost story from first-time director Juan Antonio Bayona and “Pan’s Labyrinth” producer Guillermo del Toro.

Opening with a lighthearted scene of children playing a game similar to “red light, green light” in the courtyard of their Spanish orphanage, the story then fast-forwards to about 25 years later. One of the children, Laura (Belén Rueda), has purchased the orphanage with her husband, Carlos (Fernando Cayo) and their adopted son, Simón (Roger Princep), with hopes of turning it into a home for disabled children.

While Laura has happy memories of her childhood at the orphanage, Simón is soon haunted by the abandoned souls of the children his mother once lived with. It becomes clear that the children of the orphanage, with the exception of Laura, were cursed with an incapability to grow up (closely paralleling “Peter Pan”). It later becomes evident that Simón shares a similar fate of dying young, as he is HIV-positive. He isn’t supposed to know this information; Simón learns it from an imaginary friend shortly before he vanishes without a trace from a party at the family’s new home.

While searching for Simón in the house, Laura is attacked by a child in costume, who appears to be an attendee of the party. The child shoves Laura into a closet-sized room, breaking her hand after shutting the door on it. After fainting for a brief period, Laura is awakened by her husband, who tells her that no one else saw such a child at the party. Additionally, her injury is no longer visible.

After searching aimlessly for Simón, Carlos prompts a police investigation for their son’s disappearance. Meanwhile, Laura maintains that the spirits of the children she grew up with are trying to lead her to find Simón. She begins to hear sounds in the night and see more children, going as far as hiring a medium to help uncover the hidden secrets of their home.

“The Orphanage” is one of the most original horror films released in recent years. It is full of spooky, storybook characteristics, mysterious caves, abandoned lighthouses and a shadowy beach that rarely sees sunlight near the seaside orphanage. The scenes that will make you jump are well-paced, with only one particularly gory scene midway through the film.

Described as the “Pan’s Labyrinth” of 2007, “The Orphanage” premiered at the Cannes Film Festival under its original Spanish title, “El Orfanato,” and fittingly opened in time for Halloween in its home country of Spain. Once released in the U.S. on Dec. 28, the film is set to be released in Spanish, with English subtitles. However, the plot is relatively easy to follow even if you’re not a native Spanish-speaker. Chosen by the Spanish Academy of Films as Spain’s nominee for the Best Foreign Film for the Academy Awards, “The Orphanage” is definitely a can’t-miss film.

‘The Orphanage’ opens Dec. 28 in limited release.

Sure to be this year’s “Pan’s Labyrinth,” “The Orphanage” is one of the most original horror films in recent release. (bolsacine.com)