"The Orphanage (El Orfanato)" *** (out of four): Pleasantly spooky debut from director Juan Antonio Bayona proves that even the oldest horror movie clichés are still effective in the right hands.

There's not much in "The Orphanage (El Orfanato)" - director Juan Antonio Bayona's pleasantly spooky tale of the titular haunted institution - that you haven't seen in countless other horror movies. A beautiful, secluded, seaside building with plenty of foreboding hallways; a dark secret involving the mistreatment of children; a plucky heroine driven by the love of her lost son. On the surface, "The Orphanage" sounds like a been-there-done-that snoozer. But, as Mr. Bayona's promising debut proves, even the oldest horror movie clichés are still effective in the right hands.

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