Just watched The Orphanage. Recommended, mainly for suspense (with gothic overtones) and ambiance/atmosphere. Interestingly, the movie is anchored so much within the perspective of one of the characters that it's difficult to tell what is real vs imagined... although by the very end there is definitely a solid throughline that you can accept if you would like to do so, under which everything seems to make the most sense.... and yet it could be read in multiple ways.
It's interesting to look at horror coming from various cultural mindsets (Asian horror, vs western horror, vs spanish horror) -- although perhaps I am calling the last one too soon, as del Toto seems to have had his hands in much of it, not just his own pics but Mama and The Orphanage... although then again The Others has the same kinds of sensibilities and is by yet another Spanish director albeit with an English cast.
With this kind of horror, I've found a few elements of interest. Typically human evil plays a large role and at times can even be more evil than the supernatural elements. The picture usually feels more "real" and anchored in normal, if very dark, reality because of it. The ghosts / supernatural beings can also be very eerie and macabre. But finally there's usually some element of wonder + sadness -- a sweet melancholy added to the mix -- that flavors everything, making the horror almost tragedy instead, and perhaps even a "positive" when things have been measured out, compared to the typical darkness of real life in the movie.
Interestingly, I had watched another movie by the director right before watching this -- The Impossible, a telling of one family's story during the earthquake and tsunami of 2004 centered in Indonesia -- so it was interesting to see what sensibilities crossed over. The Impossible definitely had a much larger budget (the film itself is very visually provocative and beautiful), but the same composer handled music for both, and there's that same sense of sweet melancholy to the sound, and a comfort with the camera. (THe Impossible reminded me in some ways -- sound and visuals -- of the poignant moments of Lost). Also, one of the same actors -- ironically, Charlie Chaplin's daughter, who is approaching 70 now -- is in both movies as well, although not a long part.... but she's a solid actor.
! 
:smiley_emoticons_mr 
Cut.