The Devil's Backbone (2001)

The Devil's Backbone is in essence a ghost story but is also much more. Writer/director Guillermo del Toro (Mimic) sets it against the backdrop of the Spanish civil war to add a dimension of horror that has nothing to do with the supernatural. The two concepts operate separately but periodically grind together to create considerable tension. He's not satisfied with things that go bump in the night. Some of his monsters roam the world by day too.

The entire story takes place in an orphanage. It's a massive fortress of a school, with an unexploded bomb gracing its courtyard. The weapon failed to explode on impact and has since been diffused but is too large to remove. It now haunts the orphanage, seeming to answer the children who curiously knock on it. A young boy, Carlos (Fernando Tielve), is being dropped off by friends of his parents. They were Republican fighters cut down by the war. Carlos, as the new kid, quickly becomes the target of the school bully Jaime (Iñigo Garces). Plus, just to make his arrival that much more unpleasant, he discovers a ghost, known to the children as "the one who sighs," hiding out in the orphanage. On the bright side he finds that the operators of the orphanage, Carmen (Marisa Paredes)and Dr. Cásares (Federico Luppi), are good people willing to help him through the tough time.

Jacinto (Eduardo Noriega) is clearly the film's villain. At first we see him as an angry young man but as the film progresses we realize that he is a far more monstrous character than the ghost haunting the orphanage. Raised himself at the orphanage and now its handyman, Jacinto hates the place and the people who run it with a passion. His only reason for staying is an overwhelming desire to steal some gold hidden in a safe.

This is only partly a ghost story. It's also a story about childhood, war, revenge and a heist. That's what makes this movie so fascinating. It operates seamlessly on so many different levels. It's like a carefully woven tapestry. You look closely and see all the individual threads but step back and you can see a larger picture forming. That rich depth makes this the kind of film your mind keeps coming back to, long after you've left the theater. Even the movie's title has a story behind it, one that seems like a throwaway at first but later proves to be a nice allegory for the greater story.

The movie toys with the idea of lost souls from various angles. Pretty much everyone in the film can be described as such. Carlos has lost his family and home. Jacinto lost his childhood. "The one who sighs" lost his life. There are plenty more examples. Each one of them is trying to resolve that lost soul status in their own way. It makes for a fascinating story because the ghost is not necessarily a thing of evil and people are not necessarily good. And yet they all want the same basic thing. Even the bomb in its own odd way is a lost soul, having failed to complete its role in life.

The look of the movie is beautifully done. Despite having only the orphanage to work with as a set, del Toro makes the most of it, seeming to give the building a life of its own. You can almost feel the history of the place by looking at it. It's long high-ceilinged halls make the children seem so much smaller and helpless. The basement feels like some weird primordial altar. The bomb sits in the middle of it all, seemingly commanding the area by its presence. The makeup used is spectacular. When a bit of blood and gore is called for it delivers realistically. It's hard not to wince at the injuries inflicted during the movie. Finally, the ghost is a brilliant design. The way it seems to be floating in water, regardless of setting is a perfect reminder of it being a creature caught at a fixed point. It is stuck at the moment of death and can't go forward or back. Other nice touches are the particles floating around it and the blood flowing from its wounds and dispersing as if in water.

All of the acting in the film is first rate. The children are vibrant and well rounded characters, particularly Carlos and Jaime. Their interaction is a major focus of the movie and it comes off beautifully. Of particular note is that the children don't steal scenes from the adults, instead working beautifully together as if they were all adults. Marisa Paredes is largely unknown to American audiences, which is a shame that we are deprived of such talent. She creates a woman very hard on the outside, somewhat bitter at her lot in life. But hiding just beneath the surface is a boiling cauldron of emotions. Paredes brings this across wonderfully, almost effortlessly as if she isn't acting but simply is this person. Balancing her nicely is Federico Luppi, a man who pines after her in a sad manner. Yet as the movie progresses he gains a respect and nobility from the way he deals with and treats the children and her. It's a well drawn character arc that Luppi carries off flawlessly. Eduardo Noriega makes for a great villain. At first just a pretty face, we learn more about him over time just as we do with the other characters. The difference is that while the other characters become more complex as we peel away their layers, Jacinto becomes simpler and less attractive as his true nature is exposed. Hiding underneath his anger is an even greater anger.

It would be hard not to compare the film to The Others, another Spanish made ghost story appearing this year. Both work hard to create tension and creepiness rather than flat out scare us. The Devil's Backbone is easily the more satisfying of the two though. It creates such a dense visual and emotional feel that the simpler The Others just can't match.

I'd say the only thing separating this film from large scale success in this country is its subtitles. American audiences are generally uneasy with them, which could hurt the film's success. That would be a shame because this is a wonderful film that deserves the attention of movie goers.

- John Shea

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