"I have a special surprise for you, Mommy!"...( read more)t child is an effective way of amplifying the scare factor. Into this genre now steps 2009's Orphan. Instead of being an overly effective suspense piece, however, this is a predominantly boring, meandering film which suffers from repetition and poor scripting. If the creepy kid horror genre is in need of resuscitation, this subpar affair will not provide it.
In motion pictures, it's a widespread belief that children are the embodiment of pure evil. Perhaps not all kids are the spawn of Satan, but horror filmmakers realise that evil disguised behind the eyes of a seemingly innocen
The plot, in a nutshell, concerns Kate (Farmiga) and John (Sarsgaard). They're married with two kids, but Kate's recent miscarriage has put a strain on their relationship that's already burdened by John's infidelity and Kate's battle with alcoholic tendencies. Seeking to introduce a new child into their family, the couple decide to adopt. During a visit to the local orphanage, John connects with a strange yet astonishingly intelligent 9-year-old Russian girl named Esther (Fuhrman). As you may or may not have guessed, Esther is no ordinary child, and seems to have been specially ordered from the Eastern European School of Creepy Kids. She distinguishes herself from those around her not only because she's mature beyond her years, but because she also appears trapped in a 19th Century time-warp with her fondness for Victorian doll dresses and ribbons. For her introductory scenes, Esther of course appears beguiling and innocent. Once she's adopted by John and Kate, the film then sets out to defy our preconceptions of how eerie and horrifying this little girl can be. And good heavens, is she creepy.
If it means anything - and in dealing with the consistently awful creepy kid subgenre, it likely does - Orphan is not the worst of its kind. It's atmospheric enough and contains a number of generally unsettling sequences, not to mention there's a solid attempt to delve into the characters' lives so that they comes across as more than blood-spurting automatons. Yet, in spite of these strengths, the film remains a ridiculous, by-the-numbers horror show. Spanish director Jaume Collet-Serra poorly orchestrates so many clichéd "boo!" moments designed to make the audience jump (such as mirror reveals), on top of faux scares in which a viewer believes they're about to jump but - surprise! - nothing's there. The repetition is irritating and laughable. These moments are hardly effective, too, since the music, with its rising disharmonies and sudden crashes, suggests there's a "scare" on the way. Orphan is also predictable from a narrative standpoint. It's easy to guess Esther's next move well before she makes it. And for the climax, the filmmakers call upon the most embarrassing genre convention imaginable: giving superhuman abilities to a weak character. At least the final showdown is relatively entertaining. Highly predictable, yet still satisfying nonetheless.
In addition to all this, the characters tend to act in whatever way serves the plot best. For example, it makes no sense for Kate and John to adopt Esther when she's clearly out of synch with the rest of the family. Furthermore, Kate is sometimes a raging alcoholic, but at other times an overly caring mother. Infidelity issues are raised in the first half, but they hardly surface again. At times, John is a trusting, loving husband and father, but at other times he's both ignorant and disloyal. Not to mention these characters are so stupid. What parents never see their child undress? What parents allow their child to skip dental appointments, and basically live in solitude in a mansion-like home? Why would no-one question Esther's ribbon accessories or her anti-social behaviour? Furthermore, John sets a new standard for Horror Movie Dumbass - he's bizarrely enamoured with this Russian girl (even when she rats him out for flirting with their neighbour!) and ignores his wife's desperate warnings. All of this is coupled with a major violation of Roger Ebert's main tenets for an unsuccessful narrative: if the main plot-point could be easily resolved - in this case, a mandatory medical examination should've been conducted by a state-run child protective services agency prior to approving the adoption - everything falls apart.
Credit where credit is due - in the acting department, things aren't too shabby at all. Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard share solid chemistry which makes their relationship believable. Isabelle Fuhrman is a terrific find: she's cute and charming, which makes her behaviour far more unsettling. The convincing Russian accent adds to her unnerving presence as well. For a horror movie of this type to boast such terrific performances is nothing short of a miracle. Yet, if one sets aside the solid acting, the interesting final plot twist, a few effective set-pieces and the fact it still works on a pretty basic level, Orphan remains a generic, cliché-ridden suspense film that strains credulity to breaking break. If you're in the midst of a strained marriage and are considering adopting a Soviet child, you may find this to be a terrific horror outing. As for everyone else...nah, it ain't worth the effort to get through these two distinctly mediocre hours.
Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Isabelle Fuhrman
A husband and wife who recently lost their baby adopt a 9-year-old girl who is not nearly as innocent as she claims to be.
DVD Release Date: October 27, 2009
Stats: 24,739 reviews
Your Rating
Flixster Reviews (24,739)
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January 24, 2010"I have a special surprise for you, Mommy!"
...( read more)
In motion pictures, it's a widespread belief that children are the embodiment of pure evil. Perhaps not all kids are the spawn of Satan, but horror filmmakers realise that evil disguised behind the eyes of a seemingly innocen -
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December 1, 2009Esther: I like it when it's just the two of us. You don't know how long I've waited for a daddy just like you.
John Coleman: Mommy too, right?
Esther: I don't think Mommy likes me very much.
While watching this film, I couldn't help but exclaim out loud, "I want this 9-yea...( read more) -
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February 8, 2010Thats one creepy bizaare little film I never wanna see again, its really wierd and not that unpredictable either, my hubby worked out what she was before they revealed it. I love wierd horror's but this is wierd in the wrong way. I didn't like it. Give me the orphanage anyday. Mu...( read more)
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February 7, 2010What a freak. Great film. It took a long time for people to find out about Ester and believe the Mum. Good suspense thriller.
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February 6, 2010Decent movie, great acting from Isabelle Fuhrman, and a really twisted ended!
Critic Reviews
Although reasonably, cheesily suspenseful, the movie takes a long time to get going. Its tagline, 'There's something wrong with Esther,' turns out to be a masterpiece of understatement. full review
Has enough kinky Grand Guignol moments and scenes of sheer terror to make a quick killing at the box office--even though it borrows from just about every other Bad Seed flick Hollywood has ever unleas... full review
It's a cut above most spooky-kid movies, with a twist that sets it apart. full review
So sloppy, so lowdown, so shameless and so entertaining, Orphan provides everything you might expect in a psycho-child thriller, but with such excess and exuberance that it still has the power to surp... full review
Overlong and overwrought, Orphan stays faithful to every cliché of the genre. full review
Director Jaume Collet-Serra moves Orphan along efficiently, doling out a 'boo!' shot every few minutes with mechanical professionalism. full review
Despite director Jaume Collet-Serra's apt use of running children's laughter for jolt scares, the suspense generated from Esther's early lunatic behavior is of a mild, amusing variety. full review
Here is a shamelessly effective horror film based on the most diabolical of movie malefactors, a child. full review
Comments
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November 3, 2009Yeah it was pretty good.
Some of the thrilling bits got me annoyed.
Typical plot, although twists make it a little more unique.
A few bad acting moments apart from that an alright movie.
It got my sister scared :] -
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July 25, 2009
I'll give it 3 stars up. Reason: I saw the movie at the local AMC 8, either there was not much editing in the movie or the theatre received an unedited version. Reminded me of several of the Euro "B" horror films that are in my collection. In the beginning of the movie the frames bounced around and throughout the movie you could see the overhead microphones; found that to be a bit distracting. Were it not for the background music, I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much. Kept me on the edge of my seat though, I was constantly waiting from something to happen whenever someone would open the refrigerator door. Or whenever Kate was popping a pill in front of the medicine cabinet. The music assisted with the suspense. Storyline was great. Gotta love Ester!!! Love horror movies and I will be adding this one to my collection.
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