how far would you go?

I know it’s a bit late for the greetings, but I just would like to say: Happy Mother’s Day to all the mamas, nanays, and mommies out there! You all deserve to have one day each year especially dedicated to you.

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This weekend, I watched The Orphanage, a movie produced by Guillermo del Toro (of Pan’s Labyrinth). It’s a film in the horror-suspense genre (I know, I know, I shouldn’t watch this kind of film!), and if you’re not into subtitles, then you’d best search for other movies to watch as, like Pan’s Labyrinth, this is a Spanish movie, which means the dialogue is in Español, so you have to read the English subtitles to understand the story.

Perfect for a subtitle-freak like me.

Well, personally, this may be the best horror movie that I have ever watched yet. Granted, its lingering effects (on me) are not at par with Ju-on, which had me sleepless for several nights, nor The Sixth Sense, which, I think, was the sole movie responsible for triggering my fear of being alone in a room.

But in The Orphanage, the pacing, the build-up, and the seemingly trivial stuff at the beginning that lends to a heavier symbolization near the end – these elements all combine fittingly together, weaving a most unforgettable story.

And the story is just beautiful. Suitably for a Mother’s Day weekend, it tells of a mother’s absolute love for her child, the unfortunate circumstances that befell the mother and her son, and ultimately asks the question:

How far would you go to be with your child?

The answer is as spooky as haunted, chilly manors are.