pepekwa Quality horror movies that don't rely on mountains of gore/blood or state of the art CGI effects are rare nowadays as a lot of the work is taken out of the director's hand.Director Jaume Balagueró does a terrific job here building the suspense. Calista Flockhart clearly chooses her roles very carefully and she was part of an excellent cast.I don't know if this was an actual old hospital or just a well created set but this definitely added to the whole effect, you could almost anticipate the creaking and crumbling that was going to happen.And people could relate to a lot of things here spiritually, the whole life death conundrum and everyone knows stories of misdoings in hospitals back in the day, the director skilfully conjures this all up together, the only slight disappointment is the dead nurse herself. While, i'm pleased fx here were at a minimum, she looked like she had been cobbled together by one of the children!That doesn't detract in anyway from an excellent modern suspense horror movie

harveyrock12 Wow as I got this in a triple pack box-set I was not expecting such a great horror flick, now what usually makes me scared are the shock horror jumpy moments, this really didn't have many yet I was still shocked and quite scared by the appearance of Charlotte in the end. The "mechanical girl" phrase was used to good use to lay out the plot, I especially liked it because its what a young girl or boy would call her and it really plays tricks on your mind. The acting was brilliant , and it holds onto one of the greatest plots in modern horror, think a remake should be made , and i think it should be made into one of the extreme horrors of nowadays , well one of the horror films were it really pushes the boundaries. Now that would be an amazing film.Its an amazing film and will certainly scare you a lot , this film doesn't need cheap scares or jumps , its a whole new world.

gradyharp FRAGILE (Fràgiles) is a terrific dark scary creepy atmospheric intelligent ghost story. Made in 2005 and released as an episode film in the Fangoria Frightfest, this decent film was overlooked in the theaters but deserves more attention now that it is available on DVD - allowing it to be viewed in the safety of the home! The story is written by Jordi Galceran and writer/director Jaume Balagueró who demonstrate a rather sophisticated knowledge of a little known malady called Osteogenesis Imperfecta, a genetic disorder that makes the bones very brittle and easily (and frequently) broken. The story begins on a foggy dark night as temp nurse Amy Nicholls (Calista Flockhart) steps off the ferry onto an island to fill in for a children's hospital that has been condemned but must keep one floor open until the island's other hospital recovers form over crowding following a significant accident. She is met by the kindly Roy (Colin McFarlane) who escorts her to the dilapidated hospital where the administrator Mrs. Folder (Gemma Jones) takes her on a tour, explaining that the second floor is sealed and has been for some years, and introduces her to the day nurse Helen Perez (Elena Anaya) who in turn introduces Amy to the eight children, all with significant illnesses, who will be under her care. There is one child - Maggie (Yasmin Murphy) who keeps to herself and is obviously terrified, her closest friend had been the nurse Amy is replacing. Amy and Maggie bond and this bond serves as the thread that opens the doors to the terrifying mysteries of the hospital. Noises are heard after lights out and Amy gradually learns form Maggie about the 'mechanical girl' who somehow influences the activities of the hospital. There is a doctor assigned to Amy's ward - Dr. Robert Marcus (Richard Roxburgh) - who assists Amy and the children. But Amy must find out if the fears Maggie has are founded and so she visits two old ladies (Freda Dowie and Matyelek Gibbs) who inform Amy of the story of one child and nurse who could be the connection tot he terror: the child had osteogenesis imperfecta and her ghost remains present in the hospital. Once Amy discovers this information she shares it with Dr. Marcus and the two face the decision as to how to manage the increasingly terrifying events at the hospital. Calista Lockhart, the fine Australian actor Richard Roxburgh, the always excellent Gema Jones, and the surprising debut of young Yasmin Murphy make this film work. Their performances are top notch, and the cinematography by Xavi Giménez and the musical score by Roque Baños maintain an atmosphere of terror that is credible and keeps the audience on the edge of the seat. Give this little film a chance- it is much better than the other films in this series! Grady Harp

neil-upto11 It's just too darn slow. The first 60 minutes bump along with just a vague notion that 'something's up at the hospital'.The film borrows heavily from some basic themes in Japanese horror stories and, as a result, does alright: even going so far as presenting children in serious distress which is pretty bold for a non-Japanese movie.Flockhart is adequate but it's always a bit cringeworthy when an American is crowbarred into a British/European cast for commercial reasons.All in all, not brilliant but a few decent chills.