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Even though it's not the case, Orphan to me seemed a very nice attempt at reviving the Hammer Horror banner. No other modern horror film has captivated me this strongly. It has almost become a ritual to cast a young / teen actress in either a high-school comedy or a horror film. Nearly every actress born in the late 80's / early-mid 90's has starred in the aforementioned genres, with only a relatively few coming out on top. Isabelle Fuhrman is one of the few. Prior this film, I always thought of Jodelle Ferland as the definitive modern young horror actress, due to her double role in Silent Hill. I guess she now has competition because Isabelle was truly frightening, convincing, and brilliant in her role as Esther, who, in a surprise twist, is not "little" as we're led to believe. Orphan has bought forward a great talent that - I hope - doesn't get tarnished and wasted by party-hopping and drug-pushing. Isabelle has now to me become the definitive face - alongside Jodelle - of modern horror movies which tend to have child stars in them. I wouldn't be surprised if she were to become a horror icon - either the actress or her character, doesn't matter.
Speaking of which, the utterly beautiful Vera Farmiga's - long lost sister of Madonna - character, Kate Coleman, has all the makings of a horror heroine. May not seem much in front of Sarah Connor and Ellen Ripley, but she suffers more than both of them, and manages to make her character interesting and quite-sympathetic. As far as scream queens are concerned, Vera's 30 second scream in the disturbing opening alone should make her one. From the 2000's, Kate - alongside Amanda Young from SAW and Emily Rose from The Exorcism of Emily Rose - is the definitive scream queen.
Story-wise the film is gripping, but slips awkwardly out of control sometimes. Some scenes really give off the feeling as if they're trying to go too far to scare you; as if unsure whether to put psychological tension in front or full front violence. I really enjoyed the pacing of the film but they could've done less with the uneasy suspense and more with the actual thriller. Not that it matters much. The tension is high and quite unsettling, but falls into the cliche hole at the end. It had little fire to it, little flair. Had it been more of a boom, more dramatic, more edgier, it would've worked, but instead they tried to imitate Carrie's iconic ending moment.
Performance-wise, Vera Farmiga and Isabelle Fuhrman won me for all the right reasons. Their chemistry was very convincing, although not altogether real. Peter Sarsgaard has never really impressed me with his performances. But then again I haven't seen him in many movies. In here he was quite good in his role, with all the correct expressions and all, but hardly great or amazing. Jimmy Bennett still has a long time to make his name known in Hollywood, but he won't be doing that if he keeps playing annoying characters / giving annoying performances. This is the 3rd or the 4th time I've seen him do the above two. Jimmy, grow up, go star in a musical or something. Aryana Engineer was so cute in her role as Max, a deaf-mute, and reluctant assistant to Ester. She and Isabelle really made a good pairing, and I'm hoping to see them together in another film!
In conclusion, I really loved Orphan, its suspense, its vulnerability - especially from Kate's side - and its unpredictability - especially from Esther's side, and the climax. It's not a very tight film but I enjoyed it all the same!
8.0/10
