The Devil's Backbone is an intricate,
multilayered supernatural drama on a level far superior to del
Toro's Hollywood output. As an outspoken despiser of his third-rate
American horror and action films, I was expecting to be disappointed
by this movie, but given the overwhelming praise for Pan's
Labyrinth, I thought I'd give it a try, and I'm glad that
I did.
The film is the first in a series by the director
focused on the Spanish Civil War, including Pan's Labyrinth,
and continuing in 2009 with 3993. When Carlos, a young
orphan (Fernando Tielve), is dropped off at an isolated orphanage
by his tutor, he discovers a strange world, occupied by the
spirit of a dead student (Junio Valverde) and a staff of left-leaning
teachers (Federico Luppi & Marisa Paredes.) Continual warnings
by Santi, the ghost, predict that many of the orphans will die,
the unexploded bomb in the courtyard, and the cruel caretaker
Jacinto (Eduardo Noriega) add to suspense of the film.
While some of the horror elements in the movie
are somewhat clichéd and predictable, the visuals are
astounding. The film is beautifully shot and the effects surrounding
Santi's ghost are original and effective. The boy was the victim
of a blow to the head and drowning, and as a result his ghost
has a continual cloud of blood floating from his forehead as
if underwater, and speckles of dust and grime in the water hover
around him even as he walks through the hallways of the school.
I also loved that he wasn't depicted as simply a pale person,
but a partially rotting corpse, adding to the effectiveness
of the horror.
I found the decision by the filmmakers to begin
the picture by showing Santi's murder(without revealing the
culprit) to be an especially interesting one. In most horror
or mystery films, the purpose of the film is to discover the
origin of the ghost, but in this case, we know how Santi died
and thus the mystery of his tragedy is somewhat lessened, though
the suspense of who his murderer was is heightened.
The film also contains a rare example of an older
woman in a sexual relationship with an attractive younger man.
In most instances these rolls are reversed, but I find it respectable
that del Toro included the love affair between middle-aged,
one-legged Carmen and twenty-something Jacinto. Their relationship
was not fully developed, but what is there is interesting and
unique.
The Devil's Backbone is neither a typical
horror, nor a typical war movie, and for that I applaud the
del Toro's vision. While there are a few elements I found more
or less effective than average, the film as a solid piece is
well-constructed, emotionally satisfying, and beautifully executed.
I was dreading the release of any future del Toro films after
a recent rewatching of Hellboy, but I am now eager
to see what else he has in store for his audience, save perhaps
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army.
