One of Spain's impressive 6 Films to Keep You Awake, La habitacion del nino (aka The Baby's Room) proves that there's still great potential to be found in the old haunted house genre -- at least when the project is in the hands of a talented writer/director like Alex de la Iglesia.

Horror geeks will delight in the interweaving of quantum mechanics theories into the fabric of an otherwise refreshingly simplistic storyline, while the film's unsettling atmosphere and potential for a few jump-inducing moments (at least among casual fans of the genre) should warm the cockles of any horror movie fan's heart. The Baby's Room is by no means a perfect movie, but it does succeed quite well at breaking the mold of a genre that is often in need of new ideas and novel approaches to the subject matter at hand.

Juan (Javier Gutierrez) and Sonia (Leonor Watling) are a happily married young couple who have just purchased their fixer-upper dream home for themselves and their infant son. Sonia in fact voices a concern that things are going too well for them, which was a huge mistake. Literally within minutes, the seeds of destruction of their idyllic world take root down the hall in the baby's room.

Over the baby monitor they've just installed, they hear the sound of their baby laughing, followed by the indistinct yet undeniable sound of someone whispering. Juan finds nothing suspicious in the room, but he cannot explain the incident away as imagination and move on. In fact, he purchases a monitor with an infrared camera for the baby's room. His hope that the video monitoring system will allay his fears is soon dashed, however, by something he sees on the screen. Unsure if he is dealing with an intruder or a ghost or perhaps even the onset of insanity, Juan becomes obsessed with discovering the truth and -- above all else -- protecting his wife and child.

The introduction of the "many worlds" interpretation of quantum mechanics may leave a few viewers by the wayside wondering how Schrodinger's cat could be both dead and alive at the same time, but it takes the story to a level far above the traditional haunted house story. More than that, though, it's the unsettling atmosphere of the entire film that really sets it apart. The ending isn't all that it could be, and I think the film fails rather miserably in incorporating what should be a significant minor character into the story, but I don't think there's any denying that The Baby's Room makes for a most satisfying experience for the viewer.

Unless you speak Spanish, you'll have to read subtitles -- as there is no English dubbing -- but I think that's a small price to pay for a horror film of this caliber.