Anyone else here tired of “twists”? Ever since that damned kid said “I see dead people,” every horror writer in the country has been thinking like Shyamalan.
“What final reveal can I throw in to make my story unique from all the other movies that have had the exact same plot as the one I’m thinking of right now? That way I’ll only have to write dialogue and a few expository action sequences.”
Life would be better if that above thought was just a joke. But it’s not – it’s the standard. Orphan uses all the same tricks, all the same twists and never for a second even considers doing something new. Every manipulative conversation on the part of the orphan doesn’t seem like a clever way to create a rift but rather an overused device that you can see coming for miles and miles. If you thought teen slasher films were infamous for “No! Don’t do that! That’s so stupid!” moments, Orphan is right up there.
After the third child of Kate (Vera Farmiga) and John (Peter Sarsgaard) is stillborn, the two work through the loss until one day they decide to move on and take the next step: adopting a child. Their first meeting with Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman), an orphan under the attentive care of Sister Abigail (CCH Pounder), seems too good to be true. Her amazing talent as a painter immediately impresses John and after a brief period of experimentation they take the final step to make Esther the older sister of their two kids Daniel (Jimmy Bennett) and the deaf Max (Aryana Engineer). The family seems to function well until Esther begins to reveal sides of herself no one knew she had. Gradually she grows more violent and Kate begins to suspect that their new dream child isn’t all she seems. John, however, doesn’t believe it for a second. To him she’s nothing but an angel. Their differing opinions on their new child begin to add new distance to the rift between the couple formed by Kate’s recently-recovered alcoholism and John’s past affair.
With every revelation of Esther’s true nature (killing an injured bird with a rock, a hidden knack for playing the piano, etc.) the audience begins to understand what Kate sees and what John denies. Only John won’t back down and husband and wife become almost entirely separate. When the truth about Esther is finally revealed (and honestly, it’s grasping at straws it’s so weak) you don’t feel cheated, you don’t feel fooled – you’ve been waiting so long for the twist that by the time they give you the one they have you’re just utterly unimpressed. Because you knew all along something was wrong with her. Was she insane? Multiple personalities? Evil twin? Possessed? It doesn’t really matter. They’re all the same and they all fail to impress.
However, that doesn’t make the movie any less entertaining. Even knowing you’re watching the film with the wool pulled over your eyes you can still enjoy the first two-thirds even if you know some horrendously contrived twist is just around the corner. Why? The performances. Sarsgaard plays the betrayed husband all too well and even as you want to slap him a couple of times for so willingly trusting an orphan he’s known for a few years over the woman he married, he makes you believe it. Vera Farmiga also plays her descent into frustrated and determined distrust to good effect. She knows she’s right. You know she’s right – and watching her slowly sink makes for a somewhat engrossing film experience. It’s not a great horror or thriller, but it’s at least worth a look.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
The disc has a truly inspired featurette which you just know has been covered by numerous film websites (just like this one) at least once or twice before: a profile and retrospective of famous film child psychopaths. If there’s a kid from a horror film that freaks you out, chances are they talk about it in here. The disc is rounded out with deleted scenes which include an alternate ending which doesn’t really set it apart from the film as it currently stands.
"Orphan" is on sale October 27, 2009 and is rated R. Horror. Directed by Jaume Collet Serra. Written by Alex Mace and David Leslie Johnson. Starring Jimmy Bennett, Peter Sarsgaard, Vera Farmiga, CCH Pounder, Isabelle Fuhrman, Aryana Engineer.
