The Devil's Backbone

2001 1h 46m Spanish 7.4

Action, Drama, Horror, Thriller

Spain, 1939. With the country ravaged by civil war and General Francisco Franco's Nationalists, Carlos, an abandoned orphan, ends up in a small Republican orphanage. Now, there is no turning back: with his freedom-fighter father killed for the cause, the 12-year-old boy's fate lies in the hands of the institution's unwilling administrator, Carmen. But these are trying times; bread and food are precious commodities. And then, ominous whispers filled the school's labyrinthine corridors. As the innocent newcomer navigates a cruel reality while coping with bullies, disquieting rumours of otherworldly visitations chill the bone to the marrow. Sometimes, the truth is stranger than fiction--wolves and lambs can die together. After all, blood never forgets. And in the waning months of the Spanish Civil War, revenge may even come from the grave.—Nick Riganas