A tragedy condemned to repeat itself is one of the answers to the question posed at the outset of this film. The memorable prologue includes an interior shot of bomb doors swinging open and a large bomb dropping out into the cloudy night, towards a Hadean earth below.

In Civil War Spain, a young boy, Carlos, is taken by his tutor to a remote orphanage for the children of Communists, where a bomb sits nose down in the centre of the courtyard. Approaching it, Carlos can hear eerie sounds inside. A ghostly boy appears briefly, standing in an arched doorway. Bomb and ghost are very much connected. As the tale progresses, we learn of Santi, “the one who sighs”, who went missing the night the bomb fell. The mystery of Santi’s disappearance lies at the heart of the film.

Carlos, abandoned by his tutor, is taken in by the owners of the orphanage, the principle, Carmen, who has an artificial leg, and Doctor Casares. They fear the approach of the Nationalists, and have a stash of gold ingots hidden away in a safe, ready for their escape. But there are others at the orphanage - Jacinto, the handyman, played by Eduardo Noriega from Open Your Eyes. A former orphan resident, he knows about the gold, watching Carmen when she goes near the safe.

The real stars of the film, though, are the boys. Carlos finds himself up against their leader, Jaime, who knows something about the missing Santi. Carlos is given Santi’s bed and wakes up on his first night to see a shadow on the other side of a curtain. When he goes to investigate, two water jugs are smashed close by. The other boys, waking, dare Carlos to go down to the kitchen and get more water. He challenges Jaime to go with him.

In the kitchen, Jaime fills his jug and leaves, but a noise alerts Jacinto and Carlos must hide. Finding nothing, Jacinto takes the opportunity to try the safe before leaving.

When Carlos comes out from his hiding place, an eerie sound travels up from the opening to the cellar. There he finds a pool, and we see the ghost of Santi, hiding behind a pillar, pale and decomposing, but frighteningly beautiful. He vanishes, leaving Carlos with a warning: Many of you will die.

Fearing the Nationalists, Casares and Carmen decide to abandon the orphanage, taking the boys and the gold. Jacinto tells Carmen she can leave, but not with the gold. She is saved by Casares and Jacinto is thrown out. But he returns when the boys and the owners are packing up. In the kitchen he scatters petrol. The explosion kills and injures many of the boys. Carmen too is fatally injured.

Jaime tells Carlos the true story of Santi’s disappearance, and the location of his body, at the bottom of the murky pool in the cellar, known to the boys as “the pit”.

Dr Casares dies, the remaining boys falling prey to Jacinto and his friends, but another ghost comes to their aid. When Jacinto finds the gold, hidden in Carmen’s false leg, his friends have already given up and left. Carlos has promised Santi he will lead Jacinto down to him in the pit, where Santi and the boys take their revenge.

The film concludes with the ghostly narrator of the film watching as the surviving boys leave the orphanage, and the opening narration replays.

In The Devil’s Backbone, ghosts are not evil but rather spirits seeking justice, who aid the living and warn them of danger. The real threat comes from the adults, be it Jacinto, or the Nationalists who appear briefly when Dr Casares witnesses the execution of Carlos’s tutor along with other members of the International Brigade. The proximity of enemy forces and the isolated position of the orphanage, a day’s walk from the nearest town, creates an enclosed environment, where help can only be delivered by the boys themselves.

The devil’s backbone of the title is to be found both in the opening sequence and in Dr Casares’ office: a preserved foetus with a visible jagged backbone. The locals believe such children do not deserve to be born, they are nobody’s children. The murky amber liquid around the foetus mirrors the murky water surrounding Santi’s body.

What is a ghost? the narrator again asks at the end. The film has come full circle. A tragedy condemned to repeat itself. Jacinto in some respects embodies that idea of repetition since he started out as an orphan, and comes to wreak havoc on another generation of lost boys. The bomb itself symbolises the explosive situation of Civil War Spain, as well as the ticking human time bombs within the orphanage, and heralds the explosion that is the fulfilment of Santi’s prophecy: Many of you will die.

Score: 8/10 - A cut above Hollywood. DVD includes extras about the making of the film.

Kara Kellar Bell's reivew of 'Better Than Chocolate' - here

Kara Kellar Bell's review of 'Before Night Fall' - here

Kara Kellar Bell’s review of ‘The Terrorist’ - here

Daniel Pearson’s review of ‘Whale Rider’ - here

Daniel Pearson’s review of ‘Monster’ - here

Daniel Pearson’s review of ‘Throne of Blood’ - here

A selection of film reviews written by Laura Hird - here