The Orphanage (El Orfanato) (2007)

Belen Rueda, who is so good in thrillers (for instance, Julia's Eyes), loans her weight to this slightly cheesy but perfectly entertaining Guillermo del Toro-endorsed gothic mystery with all the trappings: a creaky mansion by the sea that was once an orphanage, caves, pasty orphans in leg-braces playing nursery games, hidden rooms, ghosts, paranormal investigators, skeletons and treasure hunts.

★★★☆☆ 

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Julia's Eyes (2010)

The central contrivance of this Spanish horror thriller - the female protagonist investigating her sister's death is gradually going blind - has been used to lesser effect many times before but where Julia's Eyes distinguishes itself is in its effective, claustrophobic camerawork representing its heroine's condition, using clever visual tricks to keep things thrilling and distract viewers from the movie's fairly derivative horror plot devices.

★★★★☆

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