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The Devil's Backbone

Original title: El espinazo del diablo
  • 20012001
  • RR
  • 1h 46m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
68K
YOUR RATING
The Devil's Backbone (2001)
Theatrical Trailer from Columbia Pictures
Play trailer2:10
2 Videos
84 Photos
DramaHorrorThriller
After Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he mus... Read allAfter Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he must uncover.After Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he must uncover.
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
68K
YOUR RATING
    • Guillermo del Toro
    • Guillermo del Toro
    • Antonio Trashorras
    • David Muñoz
  • Stars
    • Marisa Paredes
    • Eduardo Noriega
    • Federico Luppi
    • Guillermo del Toro
    • Guillermo del Toro
    • Antonio Trashorras
    • David Muñoz
  • Stars
    • Marisa Paredes
    • Eduardo Noriega
    • Federico Luppi
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 247User reviews
    • 163Critic reviews
    • 78Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos2

    The Devil's Backbone
    Trailer 2:10
    Watch The Devil's Backbone
    How 'Pan's Labyrinth' Inspired 'Scary Stories'
    Clip 2:49
    Watch How 'Pan's Labyrinth' Inspired 'Scary Stories'

    Photos84

    Junio Valverde in The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    Junio Valverde in The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)
    The Devil's Backbone (2001)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Marisa Paredes
    Marisa Paredes
    • Carmen
    Eduardo Noriega
    Eduardo Noriega
    • Jacinto
    Federico Luppi
    Federico Luppi
    • Dr. Casares
    Fernando Tielve
    Fernando Tielve
    • Carlos
    Íñigo Garcés
    Íñigo Garcés
    • Jaime
    Irene Visedo
    Irene Visedo
    • Conchita
    José Manuel Lorenzo
    José Manuel Lorenzo
    • Marcelo
    Francisco Maestre
    Francisco Maestre
    • El Puerco
    • (as Paco Maestre)
    Junio Valverde
    Junio Valverde
    • Santi
    Berta Ojea
    • Alma
    Adrián Lamana
    • Gálvez
    Daniel Esparza
    • Marcos
    Miguel Ortiz
    Juan Carlos Vellido
    Juan Carlos Vellido
    Javier Bódalo
    • Búho
    • (as Javier González Madrigal)
    Víctor Elías
    José Luis Torrijo
    José Luis Torrijo
    Álvaro Vega
      • Guillermo del Toro
      • Guillermo del Toro
      • Antonio Trashorras
      • David Muñoz
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Described by Guillermo del Toro as being a sibling film to Pan's Labyrinth (2006) (this being the masculine "brother" film, and Pan's as the feminine "sister" film).
    • Goofs
      The amount of gold Jacinto puts in his pockets and ties to his belt would probably pull his pants off and definitely make it impossible for him to stand and walk the way he does.
    • Quotes

      [first lines]

      [voice over narration]

      Casares: What is a ghost? A tragedy condemned to repeat itself time and again? An instant of pain, perhaps. Something dead which still seems to be alive. An emotion suspended in time. Like a blurred photograph. Like an insect trapped in amber.

    • Crazy credits
      During the opening credits sequence, the letters of the film's title can be seen floating around the preserved fetuses. Eventually, the letters come together to form the title.
    • Connections
      Featured in The 100 Scariest Movie Moments: Part II: 75-51 (2004)
    • Soundtracks
      Una lágrima
      Written by Eugenio Cardenas (as E. Cardenas) and Nicolás Verona (as N. Verona)

      Performed by Carlos Gardel

      Courtesy Blue Moon Producciones Discograficas

    User reviews247

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    Better Than American Horror Films...
    THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE is a Spanish language supernatural thriller. It consists of a haunted school for orphaned boys. Now, in an American film that would be all you get, a ghost running around scaring the young inhabitants of the gloomy building. That's it, and it would not be scary at all. It is to the credit that the makers of THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE present the actual ghost as the least frightening aspect of the film; he becomes, in fact, the moral center of a deeply complex story.

    In Spain, the year is 1939 and Franco's army is advancing towards the small village where the most notable landmark is an impotent bomb jutting out of the ground in the center of the town. A child, Carlos (Fernando Tielve), his father's life taken in the bloody civil war, finds refuge with the Leftist caretakers of the school. Not a good place to be around at that time. He finds himself under the wing of Prof. Casares (Fererico Luppi), a strange intellectual who fears the oncoming dirge of Franco's forces. There is also some intrigue involving the caretaker Jacinto (Edvardo Noriega) and the revolution's small supply of gold. Oh, right and there is a troubled spirit of one of the dead children creeping through the bowls of the school, uttering ominous warnings to young Carlos ("Many of you will die.")...

    It is one of the strongest elements of THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE that it does not become distracted by the ghost story, I mean what is one ghost compared to the very real fears of war, death, greed, abandonment, political persecution, abuse at the hands of adults, lust, and acceptance. A spirit cannot hurt us, it does not exist on the same plain of the living. His life has ended and he can no longer be troubled by the reality the characters face. A bullet or explosion wil not penetrate his flesh, he no longer feels pain. The boys who survive him are those who have to struggle for their small place on this earth.

    The film paints in detailed strokes and does not cut corners when it comes to the emotions involved in the plot. The characters are not pawns to be startled periodically by cats or loud noises, they just happen to occupy the same space with a sad and restless dead boy.

    The director, Guillermo Del Toro (CRONOS, MIMIC, the better-than-the-original-but-that-ain't-saying-much BLADE 2), handles the material very well, never losing sight of the story he has set out to tell. The metaphors he uses (the bomb, the pool, the contents of the jars) are rich and creative. Del Toro, along with his crew and actors, create moments of intense fear and unsettling action; the musical score, by Javier Navarette, is particularly effective. The film is dark and gloomy (perhaps overly so at times), but never succumbs to the easy answers in the shadows. As for the American films it will be compared to: THE OTHERS-not scary, THE RING-not scary, DARKNESS FALLS-not scary...THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE is scary, complex and ultimately memorable.

    8/10.
    helpful•101
    41
    • underfire35
    • May 27, 2003

    FAQ1

    • what is the significance of the picture in jacinto's hand...??and why carmen never wants to kiss jacinto when they have sexual relationship??

    Details

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    • Release date
      • April 20, 2001 (Spain)
      • Spain
      • Mexico
      • El Deseo (Spain)
      • Official site
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Talamanca del Jarama, Madrid, Spain
    • Production companies
      • El Deseo
      • Tequila Gang
      • Sogepaq
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • 1 hour 46 minutes
      • Color
      • Dolby Digital

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