The Devil's Backbone (2001)

In my mind there's a distinction between a 'Horror Movie' and a 'Ghost Story'. TDB is definitely in the latter category, at least for a time. There are so many different threads for Del Toro to weave that the ghost element gets pushed aside to make time for the trials of childhood, the mechanisms of loss, the necessity for truth and, handled with sensitivity, the effect the Spanish Civil War had on its citizens.
The camera moves effortlessly through the beautifully lit environment, capturing the reality that shapes the young protagonists.
When the supernatural element returns it doesn't feel forced because it wasn't forgotten, it was just biding its time.

4 locked secrets out of 5