The Devil's Backbone

[Antonio]

Guillermo Del Toro's awesome 2001 ghost story, THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE, is the best horror video rental of the year! Sad, tragic characters and a sense of dread, Del Toro's classy direction and great acting makes this film a winner all the way around! I love it when there's more going on than meets the eye...the screenplay was layered, and Eduardo Noriega (OPEN YOUR EYES) has once again proven himself to be talior-made for this genre.

Anyone else a fan?

[countchocula]

Excellent film! The supernatural elements are less prevalent than the dramatic elements, but this is actually a good thing. What a heartrending tale. I keep trying to get non-horror folks to watch this flick, but the title gives them the wrong impression. No matter how much I praise it, they still aren't sold. If only they had a fucking clue!

[Fisting Ackbar]

It wasn't really suspenseful or scary but I did like it as a mixture of many different genres.

[the night watchman]

Great movie. One of my favorite horror movies of recent years. It's so rare to see a genre picture with such depth of character. I also appreciate movies that don't supply easy villains. Wrong or right, everyone had a comprehensible reason for doing what they did. And, actually, I did find it very suspenseful, especially near the end. Neat little twist tagged on there, too. "The Devil's Backbone" is my favorite by del Toro.

BTW, anyone know the name and author of the poem read in the movie?

[Romero&Juliet]

Originally posted by Fisting Ackbar
It wasn't really suspenseful or scary but I did like it as a mixture of many different genres.

really? I thought it incredibly scary! Definitely the most effective gore I've even seen...since... jees. Been a while!
The Devil's Backbone was just.. fantastic! (You know something's good when you run to post as soon as you finish it..!). One of the best horror movies to come around for a looong time. I cant wait to watch it again!!

[Fisting Ackbar]

It left more like a drama than a real horrorfilm for me. Doesn't mean that it's bad; it's a great horrorfilm but it could have been a lot scarier considering that Del Toro originally wanted to create the most intense final 15 minutes ever in a movie.

[Romero&Juliet]

LOL, well he came damn near close..! I dont know about you guys, but I cried like a fucking BABY~

[Dude]

Decent mix of genre. Straight forward ghost tale. Could have been MUCH better if it HAD some sort of a twist. I like Del Torro's style. This film was very Bava-esque in it's color and atmosphere. Felt like it was made in the 60's (compliment) 7/10

[MotorizedInstinct]

One of the best horror films of the past 5 years. I was glad there was no twist gimick ending like in the 6th Sense or The Others. Del Toro is one of the new great horror directors and i was glad to see him as one of the featured directors in the documentary Master's of Horror.

[bowieee]

This may be one of the best horror movies I have seen for the past few years. Del Torois extremelpassionate about his work and it shows with pizzaz to spare.

I got to meet him at a convention over the summer and when I told him The devils backbone is one of the best Ghost horror movies I have ever seen he lit up and began telling me about how he filmed it and for me to get the dvd for the extras because they go into great detail. Their was a line behind me of at least 300 people and he took the time to tell me about the movie like he was explaining it to a person for the first time. All i can say is that man is going to have his name carved into the horror movie hall of legends, Mark my words...........

[HAL]

I have to agree with the rest of you shmoes, this was one of the finest, most intellegent horror films to come along in years. Unlike most horror flicks, Del Toro takes his time introducing us to the characters and gives us a good look inside their worlds. This gives the film a depth that is sorely lacking in the genre, and also helps explain the motivations of the various characters. I felt the horror and drama elements were nicely balanced, and I just can't say enough about the photography. The shots were set up beautifully and added to the overall suspense of the film. In short, a superb effort by Del Toro!

[Jason13thh]

Because all the good reviews I watched it yesterday afternoon and it is really really good.
Unfortunately it was impossible for me to watch the film in spanish because it was only dutch - subtitled, damn !!!
Noriega is terrific and the kids,too.
Good acting for all the cast !
The photography is beautiful but not as good as in The Hitcher.
It is not really a horror film because the horror elements are rare ( well u have a ghost and .... that's all )
It is more a character - study I think.
I would have appreciated to learn more about the spanish civil war but Lands Of Freedom ( Ken Loach ) explained all the conflict.

[thirdeye]

One of the best movies i've seen in ages.
Guillhermo del Toro will be a guy to watch in the future ( by the way , i can't way till HELLBOY is completed)

SPOILERS :





[COLOR=darkblue] During the ending when the kids starting stabing Jacinto, i was screaming to my TV : KILL THAT FUCKER.