Common Sense Media Review
By Charles Cassady Jr.
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Decent old-school ghost story, Spanish-style.
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Why Age 15+?
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The Orphanage
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 7 parent reviews
Based on 14 kid reviews
Kids say this film blends emotional drama with eerie horror elements, focusing on themes of loss and motherhood without relying on excessive gore. Many viewers appreciate its heartfelt story and character depth, but some warn that its darker themes and subtle scares may not be suitable for younger audiences.
- emotional depth
- mature themes
- psychological horror
- strong performances
- subtle scares
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
A Spanish-made ghost tale, THE ORPHANAGE (original tite: "El Orfanato") happens at a sprawling old mansion, a former orphanage, looming by the seacoast. Laura (Belen Rueda) used to be housed here as a child. Now she's a doctor, and she, along with her physician husband Carlos (kind of odd we never see them do any actual work) buy the building and move in with their own adopted boy Simon (Roger Princep). Simon is dying of AIDS, but the doting parents keep it a secret -- that plus the fact that he's not really their child. Disturbingly, Simon learns these things anyway. He claims his new "imaginary" friends in the mansion have told him. After strange glimpses of disappearing kids, and clues that something terrible happened to the orphanage children after Laura left, Simon vanishes. His adoptive mom turns to psychics and mediums to desperately come up with an answer.
Is It Any Good?
In the crowded field of movie ghost stories, The Orphanage belongs with the better ones that use mood and suspense, rather than blood/gore/sex/bad taste, to evoke shock value. Even so, sharp-witted viewers of any age might be asking themselves sensible questions, like why didn't this family, uh, check out the tragic history of the creepy old building before buying it? But there's a neat dark-fairy-tale atmosphere, a minimum of gross-outs (except a horribly mangled victim of roadkill), and a really clever way the script turns the Peter Pan plot inside-out, to suit a more modern and ominous story of Really Lost Boys (and girls). Give this one a chance on Halloween, subtitles and all.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what parts of the movie are scariest, and does the (generally) non-gore approach work? Do you agree with Laura's choice at the end? How does this film stack up to other favorite movie ghost tales?
Movie Details
- In theaters : January 11, 2008
- On DVD or streaming : April 22, 2008
- Cast : Belen Rueda , Geraldine Chaplin , Roger Princep
- Director : J.A. Bayona
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : New Line
- Genre : Horror
- Run time : 105 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : some disturbing content
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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