It is a 2001 Spanish-American film written and directed by the great Alejandro Amenábar, starring Nicole Kidman, it is a true gem of cinema in its genre, I remember how much it impacted me when I went to see it at the cinema, not only for the impressive plot twist at the end, but for the way you can experience the emotions of the characters with total clarity almost as if you were part of the plot. In my opinion it is a film worth reviewing and analysing, so let's start 😊.

Es una película hispano-estadounidense del 2001 escrita y dirigida por el gran Alejandro Amenábar, protagonizada por Nicole Kidman, es una verdadera joya del cine en su género, recuerdo lo mucho que me impactó cuando fui a verla al cine, no solo por el impresionante giro argumental del final, sino por la forma en la que puedes experimentar las emociones de los personajes con total nitidez casi como si formaras parte de la trama. En mi opinión es un film digno de revisar y analizar, así que empecemos 😊

Grace is a young mother who suddenly finds it necessary to hire three employees because her servants have been missing for a week without explanation. Grace explains to the new employees the house rules that they must follow, especially that they must close one door before opening another and keep the windows closed to avoid daylight, as her children are photosensitive, that is, sunlight hurts their skin. But as time goes by both Grace and her children begin to notice that something strange is happening inside the house, they begin to hear voices and strange sounds, in fact little Anne tells her that she has had contact with a boy called Victor who lives there with her family, and the tension begins to grow more and more behind the walls of that house as Grace realises that what is happening is not a figment of the imagination of the children or the servants, something strange is really happening, something relevant also because suddenly, her existence had an absolutely stunning radical change 😲.

I think it's impossible for me to give my opinion without revealing important aspects of the plot, that is, without making spoilers, even so, being this a movie from 2001 I doubt you haven't seen it or known anything about it, but anyway if you haven't seen it yet and you don't like spoilers you're in time to stop reading.

Creo que es imposible que yo emita mi opinión sin revelar aspectos importantes de la trama, es decir, sin hacer spoilers, aún así, siendo esta una película del 2001 dudo que no la hayan visto o sabido algo de ella, pero de todos modos si aún no la has visto y no te gustan los spoilers estás a tiempo para dejar de leer.

There are many things worth highlighting in this film, first of all the script that is very well written, with well placed dialogues, on the other hand the plot is so well done that it is impossible to deduce what will happen at the end. Some people even compared this film to Sixth Sense because of the plot twist at the end, but let's say that's the only thing that's similar because the rest is very different because another aspect that I love about this one is that it's told from the point of view of the dead, not the living, and from the way they perceive "the intruders" we discover how their emotions are, but besides this we don't see the story of just any ghosts, but we are witnesses of their evolution, we feel with them the same surprise and the same anguish when they realise what is really happening.

On the other hand I love the cinematography, Amenábar took very good care of this aspect as some scenes were shot by candlelight to generate a mysterious atmosphere, but at the same time they are not too dark, outside the mansion the fog plays an important role and we see how the grey colour takes relevance as a representation of Grace's feelings.

On the other hand, we have an excellent job in the costume design, where in a certain way they reveal that something is not quite right, because if you are detailed enough you will notice that Grace's servants dress differently from her, and I don't mean opulently, but theirs look anachronistic and this is because they belong to a different era.

All the details are perfectly taken care of so that no detail escapes, so that in the end everything makes sense. On the other hand, this film does not abuse the Jumps scares so used nowadays, on the contrary, it almost does not have them, the director resorts to genuine scares provoked by what the spectator sees at that moment, but before the scare happens there are preambles that serve to set the spectator's mood and keep him in suspense.

And of course I can't say goodbye without talking about the performances, they were 10 out of 10, both the children and Nicole Kidman and the actors playing the servants managed to convey the emotions of their respective characters, but I think I must highlight Kidman's work because it is not easy to play a character as dark as Grace, which is not linear at all, because despite being so dark she has many nuances, she can be tender at times, kind and loving or she can explode with anger and frustration at other times. It must have been a challenge for Kidman because these kinds of characters demand a lot of energy from the actor, she definitely did a great job.

Y desde luego que no puedo despedirme sin antes hablarles de las actuaciones, estuvieron de 10, tanto los niños como Nicole Kidman y los actores que interpretan a los sirvientes lograron transmitir las emociones de sus respectivos personajes, pero creo que debo resaltar el trabajo de Kidman ya que no es fácil interpretar un personaje tan oscuro como el de Grace, que no es lineal en lo absoluto, porque a pesar de ser tan oscuro tiene muchos matices, puede ser tierna en ocasiones, amable y amorosa o puede explotar de ira y frustración en otras ocasiones. Debió haber sido un reto para Kidman porque este tipo de personajes demandan mucha energía del actor, definitivamente hizo un gran trabajo.

This film made us begin to see the paranormal world in a different way, more "human" so to speak, it makes you ask yourself questions like "Who are the real intruders?" or "Who is most afraid?" They, "the others" also have emotions, also feel fear and are also puzzled by confusing situations.

And that's all I can tell you about this film, from the time when lovers of this genre could enjoy them, now it is increasingly difficult to scare the audience and above all to surprise us, but this type of film not only seeks to scare you, but deep down it tries to move the most sensitive fibres of your heart, it makes you empathise with that which you don't know, and at the same time it tries to humanise what for so many times was seen as something cold and creepy.

Y eso es todo lo que puedo decirles respecto a esta película, de la época en la que los amantes de este genero podíamos disfrutar de ellas, ahora es cada vez más difícil asustar a la audiencia y sobre todo sorprendernos, pero este tipo de películas no solo busca asustarte, sino que en el fondo pretende mover las fibras más sensibles de tu corazón, te hace empatizar con eso que desconoces, y al mismo tiempo pretende humanizar lo que por tantas veces se vio como algo frío y espeluznante.