Screams & Streams

Ep. 130: Guillermo del Toro's "The Devil’s Backbone" (2001)

May 16, 2026 40:21

A ghost in a basement pool is scary, sure, but the real question we can’t stop asking is simpler: does The Devil’s Backbone even feel like a horror movie? We sit down with Guillermo del Toro’s 2001 Spanish Civil War haunted orphanage tale (93% on Rotten Tomatoes) and argue our way through the tone, the pacing, and the genre label that follows Del Toro everywhere. We talk first impressions,…