It takes a certain talent to kill people in entertaining ways and most directors simply lack this talent. Many of the best director-murderers are actually above the horror genre. Just witness the precision that Paul Thomas-Anderson brings to his cinematic murders, or the reckless disregard that Quentin Tarantino brings to his samurai sword. However, it seems that most horror film directors have had one too many cheese sandwiches when it comes to killing people in style. This is why El Orfanato is a refreshing change. The film has a distinctly un-American quality about it, and the results are some of the scariest moments we've seen in the horror/suspense movie genre in the last few years.

El Orfanato is a foreign film and is subtitled. I know what you're thinking and the film seems to know this too, as the first few minutes consist of slow moving character interaction and bizarre foreign humor. Nevertheless, the film gradually builds to a crescendo and is finely crafted. The story follows Laura, a woman who has purchased her beloved childhood orphanage with hopes of restoring and reopening the property as a shelter for disabled children. The mission is a personal one since her adopted son Simon is HIV-positive. However, Laura becomes disturbed to find out that Simon is making new friends with apparently invisible children who are hiding out in a nearby cave. Strange occurrences start to occur and before you know it, Simon is missing. Could the ghostly playmates have kidnapped him?

One great aspect about El Orfanato is the foreshadowing techniques. Small and seemingly irrelevant plots and scenes come back to the audience (quite literally) in the worst ways possible. Director Juan Antonio Bayona approaches his scare-fest movie not with an abundance of gore or never-ending chase scenes, but with an atmospheric approach, more becoming of Oscar winning dramas. There are some moments of otherworldly killings in El Orfanato that recall to mind Stanley Kubrick's work in The Shining. I had the privilege of watching the movie with a roomful of artsy moviegoers (some aspiring film students, some fearless youngsters hard to impress) and the live crowd reaction was comparable to a roller coaster. Some moments were genuinely shocking and the crowd roared like they were running a 360 loop. Other moments were more predictable, but even then the audience was still gasping in expectation of what was to come. We may have known that something awful was going to happen, but how far director Bayona would take it, was anyone's guess.

El Orfanato is not a perfect film and does have third-act problems. The more truth we learn behind this ethereal mystery the less satisfying the film becomes, as sometimes ultimate truth can be a very contrived thing. The finale is at once both implausible and insensitive in many respects. Yet, we tend to forgive the horror film genre of both these sins quite often. The truth is that El Orfanato is a class above the average horror film. Subtitles or not, the film is a thrill ride and will make you think twice about ignoring your child's imaginary friends. Grade: B