Most horror films focus on the psychological distortions of people and the darkness of society. Good horror films not only shock the audience in terms of visual performance, but also go with the shadows on a deep psychological level, and create deeper creations. Levels of psychic horror and long-term psychological aftermath. But after watching the horror film that is full of warmth and even tears in the heart, and it can definitely make people's adrenaline secrete, heartbeat and blood pressure all rise, it is in line with all the characteristics of the traditional excellent horror film, but it is really rare to see.
The director of "The Orphanage" is Juan Antonio Bayona, a new-generation Spanish director who was born in filming music and television. This young newcomer is highly appreciated by Guillermo Del Toro, the director of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film "Pan's Labyrinth". During a visit to Bayona by the Los Angeles Weekly, he said that Del Toro decided to produce the film immediately after learning about the shooting plan of "The Orphanage"; Present this film in person.
It’s no wonder that "The Orphanage" has won the praise of Del Toro. Bayona has paid tribute to Del Toro many times in the film, whether it is the cold and gloomy seaside orphanage old house, or the indoor creaking wooden floor and single iron. The layout of the small bed frame makes people immediately think of Del Toro's masterpiece "The Phantom of the Ghost Child" written and directed by Del Toro in 2001. "The Orphanage" even asks the question "What is a ghost?" through the mouth of the characters. This is simply echoing the poem-like sad classic opening line in "The Phantom of the Ghost Boy": "What is a ghost? A destined to be repeated constantly. Tragedy? A painful moment, perhaps, death is still alive. An emotion frozen in time, like a faded photo, like the flying insect in amber."
This kind of "tribute" or similarity not only exists in the film's setting, photography, composition, and character dialogue, but also in narrative techniques. The story of "The Orphanage" originated from the heroine. The young mother Laura and her husband Carlos took their child Simón back to the seaside orphanage where she lived when she was a child. Simón accidentally invited home a "fictional friend" while playing on the beach. And play a treasure hunt with this invisible friend. Laura was a little scared, but refused to believe in nonsense such as ghosts and monsters. It was not until one day that Simón suddenly disappeared inexplicably, and Laura finally saw this "fictional friend" with his own eyes, but the developments became more and more bizarre, nervous and frightened. , Panic, anxiety, sadness, despair and other emotions. After you sing, I will appear on the stage, taking turns torturing Laura and the audience's mood. Although Bayona’s approach to storytelling is not novel, nor does Del Toro have the calm and charming control of reality and illusion, but the dramatic ending and unexpected processing methods are also small in the "Pan" by Del Toro. The spirit in "God", especially the comparison and interweaving of the childlike innocent and beautiful illusion with the unsatisfactory reality, is very evocative.
However, I think the most noteworthy thing about "The Orphanage" is Bayona's ability to successfully combine typical horror films and warm films into an organic whole. There have been similar attempts in psychological horror films in Japan and South Korea. For example, "Dead Country" tried to impress the audience with love after the slow and eerie horror atmosphere ended; even Hollywood horror films have this arrangement, such as "1408" released this year. Also use father-daughter love as a clue. However, these previous combined attempts have not been successful. It is better to promote the story process smoothly, and even add a few shining details. The failure may be false because of lack of emotional paving and even ridiculous-after all, the focus of horror movies is not a warm drama. In that way, the purpose is to move the audience, and there is not too much space for pen, ink and lens to pave the way for rendering. "The Orphanage" is very successful at this point. The plot as the introduction of the story also echoes the emotional catharsis at the end. The childishness that runs through from the beginning to the end has become the source of horror and the foreshadowing of the ending climax. For viewers looking forward to traditional Hollywood thrillers, "The Orphanage" is by no means disappointing. The black lights that should be made are all shocked; for viewers who prefer slow psychological development of horror films, "The Orphanage" The impeccable lighting setting, beautiful and sentimental background music, and the unique rhythm of movement combined with tension can quickly lead people into that tense and frightened lonely atmosphere, and stay for a long time, leaving deep sorrow.
The photography of the film also left a deep impression on me. The first is the strong visual impact created by the large-scale monochrome fast contrast that has always been characteristic of Spanish movies. The second is the beautiful composition. The portrayal of cliffs, caves and lighthouses by the sea, gloomy and majestic, is truly impressive.
However, compared to Del Toro, Bayona has limited experience after all, and it is inevitable that he is a little irritable and uneasy in the details. For example, in the scene of the welcome party, the location arrangement of the young actors is a bit messy, and the setting is a bit rough; the shooting of the 8mm DV small film of the mysterious old lady has the professional level of independent short films, which is completely inconsistent with her identity. In terms of plot arrangement, Laura's two confessions in the community support meeting and bedroom were a bit abrupt and not smooth and natural; the role of the female police detective was ambiguous, and the performance of her husband Carlos was somewhat arbitrary and unreasonable. In the performance, the actor who played Carlos had a stiff expression and was completely out-of-the-box; while the facial expressions of the women who reported their psychic experiences in the community support meeting were too rich, which made people look a little overwhelmed.
Despite these subtle flaws, "The Orphanage" as a whole is really a rare feast for the senses. It is thrilling, compact, and climaxed, but at the same time delicate, delicate, gloomy and sentimental. It is a fairy tale for adults, and what lingers under the wonderful lens language is the deep and endless sadness behind the touch.
Published in "Movie World" magazine, please specify if reprinting
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