If you want to understand where the modern obsession with "prestige horror" actually started, you have to look at a dusty, haunted orphanage in the middle of the Spanish Civil War. Honestly, most people think Pan’s Labyrinth is Guillermo del Toro’s masterpiece, but they’re wrong. It’s a great movie, sure. But the real soul of his filmography—the raw, bleeding heart of it—lives in his 2001 film, The Devil's Backbone (or El espinazo del diablo).
You should watch The Devil's Backbone not just because it's a "scary movie," but because it's a masterclass in how to use a ghost to tell a story about human cruelty. It’s a heavy film. It’s a beautiful film.
Set in 1939, during the final days of the Spanish Civil War, the story follows Carlos, a twelve-year-old whose father has died fighting the fascists. He’s dropped off at Santa Lucia, an orphanage that feels like it’s at the edge of the world. There's an unexploded bomb sticking out of the courtyard like a giant, rusted middle finger from the heavens. And there’s Santi. Santi is the ghost. He’s "the one who sighs."
The Ghost is Not the Problem
In most horror movies, the ghost is the antagonist. You spend ninety minutes waiting for the jump scare. But when you sit down to watch The Devil's Backbone, you realize pretty quickly that del Toro isn't interested in cheap thrills. Santi isn't there to kill people; he’s a victim of the living.
The real monster is Jacinto, the orphanage’s caretaker, played with a terrifying, pathetic desperation by Eduardo Noriega. He’s a man who grew up in the same orphanage and now wants to steal the gold the Republican resistance has hidden there. He represents the greed and the betrayal that mirrors the larger war happening off-screen. It’s a brilliant bit of writing. The ghost is a tragedy; the man is the nightmare.
You’ve probably seen the "pale man" or the fish-creature from The Shape of Water. Del Toro loves his monsters. But in this film, the monster-design for Santi—with the porcelain-cracked skin and the constant trail of blood floating upward as if he’s perpetually underwater—is heartbreaking. It’s one of the most evocative ghost designs in cinema history.
Why the Setting Matters More Than You Think
The desert landscape of Spain in this movie is practically a character. It’s hot. You can feel the sweat. The isolation of the orphanage creates this pressure cooker environment where the kids have to form their own mini-society, sort of like Lord of the Flies, but with more empathy.
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Historians and film critics like Roger Ebert have often pointed out how the Spanish Civil War serves as the perfect backdrop for Gothic horror. The war was a conflict of "brothers against brothers," and that theme of internal betrayal is baked into every frame of the film. When you watch The Devil's Backbone, you're seeing a microcosm of a country falling apart. The unexploded bomb in the courtyard is a metaphor that isn't even trying to be subtle—it’s a threat that could go off at any second, just like the violence simmering between the characters.
Technical Brilliance Without the CGI Bloat
We live in an era where horror movies are often over-processed. They look like plastic. The Devil's Backbone was made before del Toro had massive Hollywood budgets, and it shows in the best way possible.
The cinematography by Guillermo Navarro is legendary. He uses amber tones and deep shadows to make the orphanage feel like a tomb. There’s a specific shot involving a basement pool—where Santi’s body was dumped—that is hauntingly still. It’s old-school filmmaking. It relies on atmosphere, pacing, and the incredible performances of the child actors. Fernando Tielve, who plays Carlos, carries the movie with a stoicism that you rarely see in kid actors today.
Comparisons You'll Likely Make
People always compare this to The Orphanage (directed by J.A. Bayona and produced by del Toro). While The Orphanage is scarier in a traditional sense, The Devil's Backbone is deeper. It’s "Gothic Western" in a way. It’s also the spiritual precursor to Pan’s Labyrinth. In fact, del Toro has often said they are "sister films." If Pan’s Labyrinth is the feminine perspective of the war (focused on myth and internal escape), The Devil’s Backbone is the masculine side—focused on legacy, vengeance, and the cycle of violence.
What Most People Miss About the "Santi" Mystery
There’s a specific detail about the ghost that people often overlook on a first watch. It’s the sound. Santi doesn’t just appear; he’s preceded by the sound of breaking glass or a soft whistling.
The title itself refers to a medical condition—spina bifida—but in the context of the film, it’s about the "leftovers" of humanity. The things we discard. The children are the "devil’s backbone," the unwanted results of a war-torn society. When you finally understand what happened to Santi, it’s not a "gotcha" moment. It’s a moment of profound grief.
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Del Toro’s films are almost always about "the other." He doesn't want you to fear the ghost; he wants you to recognize yourself in it. That’s a recurring theme in all his work, from Hellboy to Pinocchio. If you skip this movie, you're missing the foundation of his entire philosophy.
How to Actually Watch The Devil's Backbone Today
Don’t watch it with a dubbed track. Seriously. Just don’t.
Spanish is a rhythmic, emotive language, and the performances by Federico Luppi (the old doctor, Casares) and Marisa Paredes (the headmistress, Carmen) lose all their nuance when they're voiced over by some guy in a booth in Los Angeles. The subtitles are necessary to catch the political subtext, too.
The film is widely available on streaming platforms like Criterion Channel, or you can find the physical Criterion 4K restoration. The restoration is worth it just for the color grading—the blues of the night scenes and the oranges of the day are much more distinct.
Real Insights for the First-Time Viewer
- Pay attention to the Doctor’s jars. Dr. Casares keeps various "specimens" in jars of rum. It seems like a creepy set dressing, but it’s actually a commentary on how we try to preserve the past instead of burying it.
- The Bomb. Listen to the bomb. It ticks. People in the orphanage put their ears against it. It’s a heartbeat. It represents the lingering trauma of the war that hasn't quite "exploded" yet but is always present.
- The ending is not a happy one. Or rather, it’s a bittersweet one. Del Toro doesn't do "happily ever after." He does "survived, but changed."
Honestly, the movie is a bit of a slow burn. If you’re looking for The Conjuring or Insidious, this might feel slow. But if you want a movie that stays in your brain for a week, this is it. It’s a ghost story where the ghosts are the most honest characters in the room.
If you’re planning to watch The Devil's Backbone, do it on a night when you can actually pay attention. Put the phone away. The movie builds its tension through silence and small visual cues—like the way a shadow moves across a wall or the way a character looks at a piece of gold.
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Next Steps for the Viewer:
Once you finish the film, look up the history of the "Pact of Forgetting" (Pacto del Olvido) in Spain. It explains why the themes of unburied secrets and lingering ghosts resonate so deeply with Spanish audiences. Then, go back and re-watch the opening monologue by Dr. Casares: "What is a ghost? An event condemned to repeat itself over and over again? A moment of pain, perhaps?"
It’s the most perfect definition of a ghost ever put to film. After that, move on to Pan’s Labyrinth for the second half of the experience. You'll see the connections immediately—the way the trauma of war creates a need for the supernatural.
Check your local library or digital retailers like Vudu or Apple TV for the Criterion edition, as the extras—including del Toro’s sketches—provide a massive amount of context for the special effects.
Stop scrolling and just put it on. It’s better than whatever is currently trending on Netflix. Guaranteed.
Key Takeaways for Your Watchlist
- Director: Guillermo del Toro
- Key Themes: Betrayal, childhood innocence, the Spanish Civil War, and the nature of ghosts.
- Why it's unique: It blends a gritty war drama with a classic Gothic ghost story.
- Best way to watch: Original Spanish audio with English subtitles.
- Similar films: Pan's Labyrinth, The Orphanage, The Others.
The film is rated R for some violence and language, so it’s definitely for a mature audience. But it’s a essential viewing for any cinephile.