You have to be logged in to comment! If you don't have an account register now for free! Your account allows you to post comments and reviews, upload videos and images, access or our forums, write personal blogs, and maintain your profile.
It's rare that movies depicting children as antagonists, killers, ghosts, or freaks really impress me. However, Orphan delivers more than just a few creepy images, or scenes of brats behaving badly. Orphan is a purebred thriller, in every sense of the word. Every second that ticked by, I thought I was able to for see what would happen next, just to be surprised at how wrong I was. The movie is extremely well written and directed, and seems to have a habit of avoiding thriller movie cliche's as if they were The Grudge.
Ester is what any adopting parent could only dream of. She's a talented painter, and an intelligent nine year old, extremely well mannered, and maybe a little too loving. The acting is great. The atmosphere is dark and psychotic, yet welcoming at the same time. The plot only twists so far as to keep you interested as to what the film is leading up to. The movie is enjoyable in every way a good suspense should be.
Anyone who claims to have predicted the twist, or the entire movie, for that matter, is more full of it than a colostomy bag. But of course, let yourself be the judge. Go to the movie store, and bring Ester home for the whole family to meet.
i really enjoyed this movie despite my reservations on the cheesy plot line. i had low expectations, but this isabelle fuhrman is amazing! also the deaf girl i thought was just great!
def watch this one if you haven't yet!
Posted By: TantricNferno at 10:04am, November 12, 2009
This movie totally caught me off guard. My parents and I picked it up off of On Demand out of curoisty. It started out kinda slow, but something about it just was able to hold my attention. Esther seemed like such a sweet little girl at first, but they made the fact that she wasn't right upstairs a LITTLE too early in the movie (It probably wasn't the greatest idea to put her on the front). The stronger language came out of the kids most of the time, something I wasn't really expecting, but it didn't bother me. All the characters were well cast, but Esther REALLY stole the show. A crazy girl who just wanted what she never had, but went way too far for it.
I really hope Isabelle Fuhrman gets more roles. She is a REALLY good child actor.
Posted By: cheluvshorror at 12:17pm, November 9, 2009
I highly recommend this suspense thriller. Esther is truly the most "creepy little girl" I have ever witnessed before. Peter S. and Vera F. were at the stop of their game and even the other children in this film were incredible actors.
The story and script were amazing and I will probably at least rent this movie now that it is out on DVD. A very bone chilling tale of a girl very disturbed, but just wants to be loved.
Solid entertaining film that does lack the scare factor. The film Joshua which deals with a psycho male child is creepier and should have been more praised!
This movie is very creepy and the twist at the end is excellent and unforseen, at least, by me. Overall, a very impressive film. Good production, script and acting too.
Esther is scary.
Posted By: cjhorrorfan13 at 11:44am, November 5, 2009
For some reason, I didn't want to like this movie. I really enjoyed it though. This has thriller written all over it, not horror. The actors were clearly the right choices, the acting was surprisingly awesome and the ideas/visuals were well thought out.
Pros:
I thought the sliding glass sound was a cool edition for some reason.
The deaf girl was a great concept and I thought she was fantastic.
Great pacing.
Pigeon scene
Blacklight - wonderful.
Maxi and Esther's relationship was developed and true with the mimicry and trust.
Cons:
Stupid one liner to end the film. Stop the one liners, please.
Final sequence didn't have enough build. It fell rather flat.
It isn't gritty enough of a film. It seems too clean and refined.
Changes that would've made it better:
Mom dies, son dies, father dies, Esther dies, and Maxi would be in the arms of a police officer as he says, "Her whole family is dead."
Solid 8 out of 10. One of the year's better films.
wow, that was a twist i didnt see coming at all and i dont really know how anyone could see that one coming. this movie surprised me alot and i quite enjoyed it. the acting was pretty good as i enjoyed watching esther do her thing. the little girl max is quite possibly the most adorable little girl ive ever seen and i felt sorry for her and i was emotionally invested in her from the start and didnt want to see anything happen to her. my only problem was the length, its about 2 hours which felt a little long but overall didnt hurt the movie. its a pretty solid thriller that plays out like the omen and the good son and other killer kid movies but the twist is definately what sets this one apart from the others, definately check this one out
Posted By: flesheater123 at 10:56pm, November 1, 2009
WTF... THe holy fucks of holy fucks endings indeed. As they once said in robot chicken "What a twist!" LOL Wow the acting was really good. It had me one the edge of my seat. Abd its by far the best of the dark castle films... really good film. And the gore is in place where it needs to be. Its not super bloody more fucked up then anything else. Rent it and come up with your own reasons.
entertaining. A watchable film more of a thriller with a pretty good twist. The family is real stupid and weak so it made this film a little hard to watch sometimes. Kids are not scary! sorry.
A fantastic surprise! I wasn't really expecting anything much from this one, and ended up loving it. The actors all did a great job, and with a movie featuring three children actors that's especially rare to say. A great twist ending and lots of tension make this a must see at least once. Similar to The Good Son, but a little more extreme.
The acting was incredible. The story was slow and predictable at times with no real replay value. It kinda reminded me of the Omen remake.
Posted By: BK's Finest at 1:58am, October 29, 2009
Good movie!
Posted By: MR.PANCHITO at 2:00pm, October 28, 2009
yeah i seen this flick yesterday at a friends house and i loved it its really good twitsed movie i love the whole plot with the orphan kid thing and the acting was very good too..i would buy this movie for sure
Posted By: leatherface68 at 12:38pm, October 28, 2009
i could'nt believe the twist at the end! this film was awesome!
Posted By: nightbreed666 at 12:06am, October 28, 2009
awsome finely something that was scary with out killing every thing in site and transformition was wicked
Posted By: Mykill Diablo at 8:12pm, October 26, 2009
Not particularly scary, but one of the most entertaining films of the year for sure, this is a dark and twisted movie that is not afraid to be a little transgressive and show children being both evil, and as victims (which is rarely shown in films). I loved every moment of the film and thought it was much better filmed and acted than it had any right to be. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in movies with evil children and crazy twist endings.
you want a horror movie about a child from Hell? now you've got one!
much more entertaining than The Good Son, and i found Esther to be more of a bi*** than her innocent side. the only part of the movie i hated was when Esther got killed. not because i wanted her to live, but because it ripped off The Ring 2.
ESTHER: Mommy, don't leave me!
KATE: I'm not your f***ing mommy!
still, what a movie! many children are a**holes at a young age, but this one is beyond that, and the fact that Esther was really a 33 year old hormonically challenged psychopath came as s BIG surprise to me.
One of the best killer-kod movies I've ever seen. Amazing actors (especially esther and the deaf child) and a nice plot with a brillant twist. A big surprise; haven't expected it that good!
Some kids are batshit crazy. Don’t believe me? Watch this film. Though, a little warning to those who are interested in experiencing this movie, if you’re planning on adopting a child I recommend you pass on this film. Seriously. I’m telling you this for your own good. I like kids and all, but after watching this movie I don’t think I’ll ever look at another kid the same way again; that’s how scarring this movie was for me. But is it any good?
Orphan is about a couple who decide to adopt an older child after the death of their daughter Jessica, who died in the womb. They meet a young girl named Esther at an orphanage and decide she’s the one they need to complete their new family. As soon as they take Esther home things start to go awry as we begin to see a darker side to the supposedly innocent little girl. Kids start getting hurt, and the mother (played by the ultra-talented Vera Farmiga) begins to think that Esther is behind all of the things that are going wrong. But things only get worse as Esther actually commits murder.
The best characters in this film (besides Vera, whom I love unconditionally) are the normal children, especially Max (Aryana Engineer) who is possibly the most adorable girl I’ve ever seen. The contrast between Max and Esther becomes stronger as the film progresses as Max is forced to help Esther with her dark deeds. In the second half of the movie the couple’s son, Daniel (played by Jimmy Bennett) discovers Esther’s wicked side, which is followed by one of the most memorable scenes in the film. Let me set it up for you: After witnessing one of Esther’s ‘activities’, she walks into his room while he’s sleeping and wakes him up by pressing a blade to his throat. Esther then threatens to “cut off his hairless prick before you find out what it’s for.”
In the end, this is a pretty good movie as long as you don’t go in expecting too much. As a highly suspenseful thriller Orphan excels, but that’s about it. There are some cheap scares, even some fake ones, there are moments that will make you cringe, and others that might make you laugh out loud. If you’re looking for a good movie to invest two hours of your precious weekend time into, this is certainly a movie I would recommend… just don’t bring the kids.
Orphan is rated R, for Creepy Ass Kids who F#%King Kill People.
Incredible movie!!!! Didn't see that coming what so ever! As stated by another reviewer, do not know how much of a replay value this movie has, but first time through it was outstanding. Acting was great all the way around, setting was great, and the movie flowed very well. This was one of those rare movies that I was looking forward to the ending (because I knew there was some kind of twist) yet I didn't want it to end. Definitely a fine addition to any horror collection.
DISTURBING. TWISTED. VIOLENT. SHOCKING. BRILLIANT! This film is as good as they say!! It was sort of hard watching at first, but then I became so into it, by the ending I knew it was LEGIT!
Seen this movie months ago. Still trying to get a grasp on my feelings for this flick. I agree the concept was unique. Isabelle Fuhrman ( Esther) was amazing. Some suspenseful parts. Tried to do a good job putting the story together. Fell really short with an ending, I was not happy with the ending at all. Me being a dental student I picked up quickly on the a possible reason she wouldnt want to go to the Dentist and then sadly knew the twist. Ugh!!!! Some very creepy moments though. It was good.
Posted By: Horroraddikt at 12:39am, September 21, 2009
Loved it.
Finally a twist I did not anticipate.
The scene when her art work is realised is spectacular...one of the better movies of the year.
Original and thoroughly enjoyable.
Posted By: googoomuck at 9:03am, September 15, 2009
WOW! i was NOT expecting this at all. i was really looking forward to seeing it but never got around. i finally saw it tonight and i thought it was insane! i was blown away. i was on the edge of my seat for every minute of it. best horror movie of the year so far, without a doubt. awesome.
Posted By: Razor_Sharp at 5:14am, September 8, 2009
I expected Orphan to be just another stupid movie with no twist but it turned out to be one hell of a cool movie! One of the best films this year!
Posted By: horrorfan25 at 11:21am, September 3, 2009
Orphan is the best horror film this year, along with Drag me to hell. This is an intelligent film that embarks on a fresh and unique concept, despite the advertisements that make it out to be a run-of-the-mill evil kid film, which by no means is it. It was a truly captivating experience and is devoid of the typical cliches, aside from two scenes. The characters are a huge bonus in itself because they are realistic and three dimensional characters. They are gradually developed and are worth being sympathetic for. I highly advice horror fans to check out Orphan. It's not only a sensible, mature film, but it's probably the best horror you'll see this year.
10/10 By far one of the best films iv'e seen of the year, Wasnt predictable like what some people said it was as the ending had a big twist to it, Wich the film could have done without, but it connected all the dots to the film by tying it up at the end. To say the girl is 12 in real life she did an amazing job acting. Esther in my oppinion was just an under-estimated kid who just wanted a loving family and when she couldent get it she went mad. Excellent film quite original and thats what i loved about it and there's not too much gore buyt enough to keep you entertained and watching.
I went into this movie just expecting a thriller you'll a little blood and a good story and that is exactly what you'll get from Orphan...not the orphan as movie theaters and the tickets are calling it.
The acting in this movie is great expecially from the mother and esther and just everybody in this movie
and th esotory is great as well....
but my main problem with this movie is that it has no replay value and is way too long. After you know what happens you wont really care about watching it again.
This movie was good the first tiime but after 1 viewing you wont want to watch it again and that's the only reason im giving it a low score....
I have never been a fan of the killer/evil-child films at all, i thought "Joshua" was a terrible film that made watching paint dry seem like better entertainment.
I wasnt sure I was diggin the film for the first half hour, but as the film unfolds its self it really becomes more interesting as it moves on.
My favorite thing about this movie is the particular ending that I will not mention as I dont want to spoil the exxperience for anybody. But let me say that the ending was satisfying and 100 times better than what I thought it would be.
Its nothing to concrete, say like a great 8/10, 9/10, 10/10 movie. but I give it the 7/10 as its right on the number for recommendation.
Ok all I can say is I walked in expecting The Omen and left with Fatel Atraction!!! I loved Orphan it was smart and well acted. I can't wait for the dvd release .. if u haven't seen this movie ... GO SEE IT NOW!!!! It really is fantastic a kick ass thriller that is a must see for all horror fans!!!
9/10
Orphan is a fresh bit of horror that we need. Little girls, killing people and swearing. Orphan is a fresh take on horror, with amazing plotted visuals, and some great script one liners, and a great cast too. I highly reccomend to fans of The Omen, or any blood thirsty horror fan, because this movie is pure excellence.
I think this movie had the potential to be much better than it was. When i walked out of the theatre I thought "to be honest this movie was like the good son and the omen put together"...but much more badass! This movie is great if you like jumping out of your seat or suspensful movies, I reccomended this movie.
Posted By: Kennreaper666 at 10:45pm, August 16, 2009
Esther is one of those creepy little kids that can get away with anything by her inoccents. Including murder...
Kate coleman (Vera farmiga) Has a miscarrige and her and her husband John coleman (Peter sarsgaard) Plan to adopt a child, So thats when they meet Esther, A 9 year old russian girl played by the fantastic Isabelle Fuhrman. They adopt her. But they don't know that Esther has a secret... Can you guess Esthers secret?
The beginning is very disturbing and bloody. Like a nightmare. Well because it was a nightmare.
When i went to watch this, I was kind of expecting to be like one of those movies like "The Omen" or "The Bad seed" even "The good son". The beginning has passed and it passed abit boringly.. . But through out the film, theirs lots of jokes. One of the funny scenes here.where esther drops the "F" bomb on her mom. I couldnt stop laughing. and Then we get to see esther have temper tantrums. and blah blah. Then we get to one of Esthers class mates who make fun of her. The classmate doesnt know who shes bullying with, so esther pushes the little girl off the playground and she breaks her leg. But esther says she was just playing her and the little girl slipped and fell. and esther takes her violence up anoch. I was a bit shocked to see a acutal kid bash the living hell out of a woman with a hammer to the head. It shows all its glory of blood and it was not even in like 1 hour :O The only thing about the film is the scares in it was very very.. Well how do i put this.. not scary.? . later on Esther drives the mother into madness. As i was watching i found it very well done. It didnt go so fast. and it was always good timing. It was pleasently shocking and disturbing what esther does to drive her mother over the top. And it doesnt stop their... The twisted ending... I just had to say. it was bizzare. but shocking and twisted. But alittle silly and laughable. The body count isnt Big also. Its not a serial killer film, it is a thriller. I would give it a 7 but I just love the killer performance of Isabelle Fuhrman. XD ~8/10~ "I'll cut your hairless little prick off before you even figure out what it's for".
Now this is what I call horror/thriller! It has great acting from everyone involved especially the children, it has a solid script and story, the kills were brutal when they happen, it has a few good jump scares and a great twist ending that I didn't see coming not even a little bit and it is probably the best twist that I've seen in a horror movie in a decade. This movie packs a punch and finally there is a horror movie that has some balls other than some crap hollywood has been dishing out lately. It deserves all the credit and money it can get over all the watered down horror movies and remakes, so go out and see this movie ASAP! This horror movie was also well filmed and directed and has an excellent spooky atmosphere to add to all the greatness. Yes it has been done before and repeated but not as slick as this one in a long time. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!!
Orphan provided a lot of build up and then let it leak out slowly so that the third act didn't give me the pay off that I was expecting.
A family adopts a girl, Ester, who is crazy. A familiar premise. Evil children. The thing about that setup that gets us is that children are so innocent and small. What harm could they do us? Well, it turns out that this movie wasn't trying to answer that question. They brought out one question and gave us the answer to another.
I liked many things about this movie. The family was just beginning to heal after many hits including infidelity, alcohol abuse, irresponsibility, and a miscarriage. This wasn't a perfect family to begin with so the fact that Ester could tear them apart and manipulate them was very believable. Oh, and the little girl who played the daughter Max was very cute. The fact that she and her brother Danny try to stop Ester was great; they weren't just Ester's victims.
However, most of the faults were piled on Kate, the mother (Vera Farmiga), giving the her husband John (Peter Sarsgaard) plenty of reasons to not trust Kate when she says that there's something about Ester... It made the movie tedious after 75 minutes in. Ester does something evil, and Kate suspects Ester, but John doesn't believe Kate because of her past. Whatever. They held one note for far too long.
And then there is the whole deal with Ester being adopted. And from Europe. So that she is extra foreign to us. She's suspect from the very beginning. We're not given the chance to feel conflicted with her being a child because she doesn't act like one from the very beginning. It goes from what if your child was evil to what if you get conned by some foreign crazy. It made all of Ester's violence and manipulation not matter.
Still, the film tries to pretend that we're supposed to feel at odds with her being a child. Until the end. At which point I'm feeling the movie should have already ended. Moreover, the ending's impact was dulled because there was no way the Kate wasn't going to try to stop Ester with every thing she had so it becomes like the ending to every other horror movie I've seen.
I'm not exactly sure why everybody loved this movie. I was unimpressed with the acting, outside of Isabelle Fuhrman. The ending, I thought was utterly ridiculous. I was unimpressed with the "twist", I don't wanna be that guy, but I called it. During the final climax, I leaned over to my friend and told her to "be ready for the lamest ending ever", I was pretty much right.
That being said, here's the good I found. I thought Isabelle Fuhrman's acting really stood out and the deaf child (not sure on the name) was a good foil. I found the paintings to be utterly creepy.
The bad: I hated Vera Farmiga's character, I thought the husband's background was under utilized. They really went after the intense moments to keep the viewer off balance for the real scares. Unfortunately, I thought that technique backfired. I thought it was quite predictable and it seemed like I'd seen this movie before. The twist is M. Night Shaymlaman (sp?) like and kind of disappointing. I found the movie to be boring in many places and I thought that rather than develope characters during these parts they tried to utilize the atmosphere to keep the viewer off guard. All in all, it's not something I'd recommend to anybody.
One of the best movies ive seen this year if not THE best horror film of 2009.The camerawork and score use stalker tricks that kept me guessing more then any other use of that method,plus the story was sharp,smart,and the twist was shocking and satisfiengly unpredictable. I suggest when recomending this film you use the CRYING GAME method: go see it and dont spoil it. And yes,there are obvious flaws in the plot, such as the oblivious father who doesnt think twice no matter what he learns about the girl,and the way that she covers her room in obscene artwork that goes unnoticed by everyone... but nonetheless the film is refreshingly smart and different then the generic neo-slashers force-fed to the public these days.
I am sick of the common horoor movie , this was different and the ending just made the movie. The acting was amazing and It was one of the best horror movies I've in a long time
Better than I expected. The build up to the climax got pretty boring at some parts, but overall it was pretty good . You really get a sense of hate for this little bitch. Then the twist comes around and slaps you right upside the head. The twist in the film is what I found to be the creepiest thing about it.
This movie could have easily been ruined by bad acting but it was actually pretty damned good. I thought the acting in this film was top-notch. Especially that of Isabelle Fuhrman (Esther).
Overall it was a pretty interesting movie. Although monotonous at some times, it pays off in the end.
Surprising, genuinely terrifying, and ell acted. I as pleasantly surprised upon seeing this movie, having had lo expectations in the beginning. It as very ell made and smartly paced.
I saw this movie yesterday and I was very disappointed in it. It takes to long to get to the horror factor of the movie 57.56 sec into it to be exact. I would emit that the move did have it’s strong points, did have a good story line, and provide suspense. Over all it was an ok Horror, Suspense, and Thriller movie. The only problem I had with the movie was the fact that the gore was there, and that it takes to long to get to the horror part of the movie. I would prefer this movie over the collector just because it was original and the fact that it didn’t still ideas from an recent horror films.
i really liked it thought the tension established was brilliant loved the ending and the twist, thought the gore and some of the kills were really good....overall very solid flick and one of the better mainstream hollywood horror films seen for a while
maybe not as terryfing as the original omen but this movie was pretty satysfying. Esther was really creepy. i love how she can portray a nine year old girl but yet have a demonic side to her.
The twist was kind of weird but i guess i can get over it. all in all, Orphan was a really good film.
I think the twist was great it was not boring for five minutes made u wonder wat next it was not long to me even transformers was borin at times and was so long ur butt would hurt
I absolutely enjoyed this film. With all the criticism of remakes, reboots and sequels, it was refreshing to see an original horror film so well done. Isabelle Fuhrman is a great young actress and stole the show. It reminded me of Ellen Page's riveting performance in "Hard Candy." I'm definitely seeing this movie for a second time this weekend!
So we here at Onscreen went to the preview of Orphan last night, and while Jasyn is quite a scaredy cat when it come to fright flicks .. I'm the obsessive horror nut ! but we have some bad news ...
Although well acted and well set, the film lacked any originality, so many old frights and cliches it was almost "paint by numbers" look the scary kid was one of the better ones by far, but it was "Joshua" without the intensity, Vera Farmiga was great, Peter Sarsgaard could have been played by any character dad.
I loved the setting of it being winter and eerie and the house was fantastic, but overall I expected more but at the end of the day was still satisfied with a dose of Thursday night horror.
Don't rush out and see it, but also don't miss it, it does deserve a watch.
*may contain spoliers*
I really enjoyed this movie! It was well-done, well written and the acting was amazing! The little girl who plays Max was so expressive, you really knew how she felt and how scared she was. I did not expect the twist AT ALL, and afterward thought about how fucking twisted this chick had to be. And after the reveal the makeup was crazy good. She looked so haggard! I was pleasantly surprised.
Not even a good bad movie... just shamefully stupid, Has this really been such a bad year for horror that this celluloid turd has survived into a third week in the Box Office top 10? Bring on H2 and FD4, PLEASE???
Put all your misconceptions aside for this movie, because it is not anything like The Good Son, or Joshua. In all the slew of evil children movies coming out including the awful Brit bullsh*t of The Children, it was nice to see a movie that delivers. Esther is the perfect embodiment of evil and not since the creepy kid of Silent Hill has a kid thoroughly creeped me out. Vera Farmiga helps drive the movie along with the good daughter. I loved the climactic scenes towards the end and found it brutal when she does away with one of the central characters. This movie has everything that makes a horror movie good, and I am glad to see that there's hope for American Horror after all.
I asked David about this movie before I went and saw it. He said that the build up was great but that the end sucked. I sort of agree with that. I thought the end and the twist were a on the silly side. But, I did enjoy the overall product. Some nice fake ass jump scares and a couple of decent kills. I do kinda hope this is the last "killer kid" movie we see for a while.
When I first saw the trailer for Orphan I said to my partner "I'll netflix it when it comes out on Blue-ray", but by the time the film hit theaters I was shocked by the good reviews it was getting. I saw it on opening weekend and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. The movie is strong, scary, entertaining, and it didn't shy away from what most current film-makers making a "killer kid" movie would. Esther is one nasty little bitch and I loved it. Though, not typically my favorite type of horror movie but this movie delivers the goods. The twist wasn't as shocking as I was expecting it to be, but I appreciated that it went for a more "believable" twist as appose to ....demon spawn child from hell ! Orphan is a good and well made movie and It's do impart by director Jaume Collet-Serra and it's good performances. Good time had with the orpahn
i went to this with low expectations,and was blown away.this movie was perfect the acting was superb,plot was amazing.if you are thinking of seeing this SEE IT.
I'm sorry. I don't get it. Yes, this film didn't relied of special effects for its scares, but here's the thing... It's not scary!!!
(SPOILER ALERT)
A kid with a psychological problem is no way scary by all means, and the twist totally ruined the ending. What kind of a sucker would be terrified with a horny midget?! Its probably because of the gun in her hand, but I don't care.
And what's with the horrible camerawork??
better than expected, overall a solid film with a great twist ending.
Posted By: gina_spicoli at 11:16pm, August 5, 2009
i thought this movie was really good.. i went in thinking it wasn't gonna be that great.. i enjoyed it though and it had a nice little suprise i never would have guessed.
One of the better horror movies of the last few years. Though the twist was good, it kind of works better on paper than in the actual film because you cannot help but not believe it. Not to say the twist ruined the movie because it definitely didn't. I brought tons of friends to this who had it set in stone that it would be shit but instead, they completely dug it. Make sure you see this in theaters. Good horror movies need a good box office turnout.
Thank God, they still make horror movies like this. "The Children" was wonderful as well, but not nearly so much fun as "Orphan." Whereever director Jaume Collet-Serra found the electrifying Isabelle Fuhrman and cast her as Esther, the most evil child since Damien was thrust upon us in the original "The Omen," he has found a star in the making. Utterly believable and frightening, she takes the screen and makes it hers. She is only matched by luscious Vera Farmiga as the mother who comes to realize that all is not right with her new adopted daughter, Eather, but noone will believe her. That includes Peter Sarsgaard whose character is the only weak link in the film. His wife's warnings go unheeded to the point where the viewer stops caring about him and what Esther does to him seems somewhat justified.
This film starts slowly, much like a rollercoaster climbing that first incline and when it reaches the top, it unfolds in relentless fashion. It is a thrill ride with a distraught mother fighting to protect her family but to no avail. The suspense builds to a no-holds-barred climax that will have the viewer on the edge of their seat.
With the exceptions of maybe the original "Halloween," "Alien" and "Aliens,"and more recently "The Ring," the final 20 minutes of "Orphan" are devastating.
Collet-Serra is a director to watch. Writers
David Leslie Johnson and Alex Mace have created a taunt screenplay that transfers to the screen brilliantly.
The movie belongs to the female leads, Furhman and Farmiga. Though films like this seldom get heard of at Oscar time, both actresses should be considered deserving. Some excellent support is added by the other child actors as well.
If you are a fan of a straight forward horror film without all the gore, "Orphan" delivers with both barrels.
Just goes to show how deceiving trailers can be. I mean, c'mon, the trailers made this movie look like some lame Good Son, The Omen, Bless the Child, Joshua, Mikey type rip off (not that any of those movies suck or anything, just saying). Though, lo and behold, this film is far from any such trite cliche "bad seed" movie I expected.
Think Mikey but more brutal, more style and a pretty sweet twist. Speaking of the twist, I have a bit of a love/hate feeling toward it which, sadly, I cannot explain for I feel this movie is one to be seen without the knowledge of a spoiler.
Point is, the twist almost feels like it discredits the majority of what makes the film badass in the first place. Not to say it ruins the movie though, it still runs along at a visceral pace that'll no doubt leave you saying "Fuck yeah!" by the end.
I went for my birthday to go see this and it was so awesome! Loved the storyline and all the actors did a great job!! Max was sooo cute!!! I totally dig the twist ending reminds me of a late 70's horror movie alot!! Definately going to have to buy this on dvd !!! Worth being in my collection.
Fantastic film! I had as much fun watching this as Drag Me to Hell. Isabelle Fuhrman blown me away, and the twist is great. I'll definitely pick this one up on dvd.
This is by far the best movie I've seen in a long time. Great story, great acting and one hell of an ending! Finally something original that was totally worth my $$. The only bad thing about the movie is, now I have to wait for the DVD to come out.
I saw this opening weekend and I thought it rocked. The girl who played "Ester" was amazingly creepy and frightning. She has a great career in front of her. I would love to see her in the american remake (don't want there to be one but if there has to be one) let the right one in as Eli.....
I thought this was a great movie. It felt like I waited forever to see it, and it did NOT disappoint.
I knew the twist before going in, and I thought "that sounds HILARIOUS, I have the urge to see it more now." -- Turns out the twist worked out so well. It wasn't cheesy or stupid.
You end up liking each character, especially the children. The little girl who played Max was the cutest little girl ever, but Isabelle Fuhrman blew me away - especially at the end.
First i am so happy that Holloywood can put out crap horror movies, and then all of a sudden they snap out a should-be classic. Orphan is that shpuld be classic. I love how it was comical in the dialogue, but the scene where the comedy comes makes you uncorfortable. Such as when Esther kills the bird, and says, "It's in Heaven now." You have know idead what to do, laugh or go, "HOly shit, this bitch is nutty as fuck!" And I like how it was long, but they put it to good use. In that time you know the family and you care for them. I am so ready to watch this movie again. I understand that not every classic can be liked by all but people have the audacity to not watch the film, but still judge it and give it a bad review. Not all cult classics will be liked. I hate one or two cult classics myself. But that is not right.
I am also glad to have seen this movie in the cinema because, I love how the audience responded to the film. In the end I as well as the whole audience was clapping and yelling. I felt such a rush from this movie. Even the next morning I was still excited. I want all my friends to see this movie. And might I say that this cast was phenomenal, as well as Esther.
if you don't know the secret, then don't assume you know. And one more thing, I am kinda pissed this movie tanked in the box office. It should have been number 1 baby! :) 5 out of 5 stars! Cult classic in the making, I hope!
OMG was this movie hilarious! I knew from the start when Esther had a French Canadian accent, but was supposed to be Russian that this was a movie I was never going to forget! Also, I never saw the twist coming, not at all - destined for cult classic status, no doubt - and I can't wait to see it again!
Loved this movie! I was screaming out loud in the first scene because it was so horribly disgusting... (and when she puts on the make up - everyone was screaming.) Esther had the best lines - This evil orphan did not disappoint me!
I really enjoyed this flick. I loved that they took the time in the beginning to actually let you get to know the characters. By doing so, it allowed us to care about them later on when all hell breaks lose. So many movies are ruined by catering to the ADD crowd. This one has a nice slow progressive pace that ends in quite a bang. The twist was fine. I wasn't expecting it and thankfully, no one ruined it for me before seeing the movie. So funny how at first I thought very highly of her by putting the bird out of its misery but then fast forward to the scene in her bedroom with the black light showing exactly what she was painting all along. One Fucked up kid alright.
I've been looking for a movie that offered me some suspenseful scares, instead of a flood of fake blood. I found it.
I almost had to leave the theater during the opening scenes, that was entirely too much for me. I stayed, though, and noticed a strange sound in the theater...silence. Literally everyone there was just completely engrossed in the movie. Occasionally someone would whisper something to their companion, but overall, nobody talking, giggling, or even texting during the movie. Now really, does that even happen? I've never seen an audience so deeply involved in a movie.
I hope the girl who played Esther continues making movies. She was terrific. (even if I did want to smack her a few times)
The acting was good. Esther was good. she was good at being scary one minute and creepy the other. the ending/twist kind of ruined it. it wasn't believable. I guess that's why they say "you'll never guess her secret" because it's so far-fetched that it won't come across your mind. I just thought it was kind of a stupid secret of hers. I think they tried to make it like SAW and kind of failed. They tried to have several elemnts expressed in the beggining of the movie, come out in the end and make you say "i can't believe it" but it didnt work for me.
Esthers schemes, murders and lies were CRAZY! i couldn't believe some of the stuff she did. it was terrible. the little deaf girl (i forget her name) was good. they made it like she was the heroin kind of, but it wasn't like she was invincible or perfect. I don't know. I just kind of liked the whole concept of that. well good movie, not too scary though. it was preety suspenseful at times
This was one of the best horror films I've seen in a few years. After a shit stream of nothing but dead girls and women crawling out of wells and down stairs, it's about time something creative came out. I definitely did not call the ending, and I almost always can call a twist 10 minutes into a film. I liked it a lot, most def :) I had goosebumps hard core in the theatre, and I definitely could have slept better that night too, hahaha.
This movie had some pretty good scare scenes, and an awesome storyline about a couple named Kate and John Coleman who lose their 3rd child. They have a son named Daniel and a deaf daughter named Max. They decide to adopt a little girl named Esther. (Isabelle Fuhrman did an awesome job as Esther! She was cute and scary at the same time) Esther begins to do bad things like pushing a girl who teased her in class off a slide, having temper tantrums, drives Kate crazy, threatening to slice off Daniel's manhood, and even killing someone! One of my favorites parts was when Esther dresses up beautifully, putting on makeup, and trying to seduce her new dad. What is wrong with Esther? I highly recommend that you adopt an ORPHAN!!!
I'm not trying to brag, but I kind of figured out Ester's secret before I even saw the movie. But it was one hell of a movie, I'll tell you! Man, this makes The Good Son look like Home Alone. This movie was awesome. I had thrills and suspense, and the great thing was that the directer knew how to build suspense for the scare. The acting was top notch, and the script was very well written. I'm definitely going to go see this one again. I highly recommend it.
I loved it I knew it would be good but the twist was so good and unexpected. I loved Ester so much it was so fucked what she did and how she managed to get away with it. I can see why they wanted to protest this movie lol people will be scared the hell of orphans now.
I was very pleased with this movie. The director did a fine job and kept you with the movie all to find out the actual truth. Which was even more jaw dropping. I wouldn't even think of it until they reveled it! It was classic. Great job! Can't wait to see what this director has in store for us next!
I was also surprised that I enjoyed the movie, despite the fact that the audience at my screening was incredibly annoying. I wasn't planning on seeing it because I thought the trailer was laughable and it appeared to be what my friend calls "another creepy, white-faced child movie." But it was definately a good movie. I wouldn't call it really scary but it had great tension. I'm glad I saw it.
Someone give this director some effin credit and put him on a bigger project already!! I say kick Bousman off Mother's day and let this Collet-Serra take a swing at it. Awesome flick, it's what the Good son should've been.
All's I have to say about his movie is "WOW!!!" It was well written, the filmography was A-MAZING. Especially when it'd seem like something was coming and it didn't happen, you let your gaurd down, then seconds later, BLAMMMO!!! There goes your pride, lol. Besides the excellent thrills & chills, the casting was stupendous. Jimmy Bennet played a really good frightened child trying to get his sister to safety but complications arise. Peter Sarsgaard is excellent at being one of the worst parents ever (which is good in this type of movie, no joke). Vera Farmiga delivers one of the most heart ripping mom's that lost their daughters. And the whopper of the movie is Isabelle Fuhrman, omg what an evil little beotch. I couldn't believe they got a little girl to do all this stuff that she did (RIP a lonely black nun). Oh and did I mention little the girl that played Max... so cute... so terrible with aiming a gun.
Gosh I really did enjoy this movie, best part I've gotta say is either when Jimmy Bennet's character was caught in the fire or when Peter Sarsgaard's character finds out the trick with the fish tank and the black light in Esther's room... holy crap that was intense.
I loved every second of this movie, except the part where I watched it with my mom. Through the whole thing she was like "Oh GEEZE, OH NO, I Hate That!!!" But the best line from her came during the first 10 to 30 min. of the 2 hour movie. "Gerry, I Don't like this, it's too long... I want to leave." Haha, we had quite the time. Pfft.
Anyways, go see it... just not with your mom, but I'll see it with your mom.
I LOVED this movie. It's such a skillfully done thriller and one of the best in the evil kid sub-genre period. I loved the set-up. It doesn't take long and you find yourself really caring about this family. There's a wonderful scene early on when Farmiga's character is tucking her daughter into bed.
Not only is this entirely successful as a creepy suspense film and even a drama, but it's also downright hilarious. And yes, it's intentional. I loved its sense of humor. The things Esther would say and the way she would say them had me cracking up. She's delightfully evil. Even the murder scenes had me laughing. Just seeing this little girl being so cold and vicious provided a great thrill. And not in a sick way. It was just funny.
The performances are great. I found both Vera Farmiga and newcomer Isabelle Fuhrman as Esther to be fantastic.
I'd heard so much about the twist before seeing this movie without actually finding out what it was. Despite everyone saying how laughable it was I didn't want to find out until I saw the movie myself. I'm really glad I didn't. I don't think it would have been as enjoyable had I known the whole time. I never saw it coming either. That could be because it's so out there that it's nearly impossible to see it coming. Yet at the same time it wasn't nearly as outrageous as I was fearing judging by the way it was talked about. Thankfully I didn't find it hard to swallow and was able to go along with it. Is it realistic? Not exactly, but it worked fine. It only helps that everything before it was so great. The whole time I was scared that this supposedly horrible twist was going to ruin the movie for me. I'm so glad that wasn't the case.
This is a really wicked good time. At a hair over 2 hours it never felt too long. I was having too much fun with this gleefully twisted thrill-ride.
The snowy setting was a nice bonus.
This is the most fun I've had at the movies since Drag Me To Hell.
Orphan was definitely easily the best horror/thriller of the year so dar. I also think it is the best child killer horror flick ever. It beats The Good Son on all levels. I thought the actors did amazing jobs portraying their characters. Vera and Isabelle were outstanding and deserve recognition for their performances. Daniel and Max were both great as the children. Max is the most adorable little girl ever. This movie has everything you want. Brutal violence, edge of your seat suspense, some humor. Its a great popcorn flick and the whole audience was involved with this movie every step of the way. This movie will make you so stressed and you will have about 10 nervous break downs but thats what its supposed to do. The director did an incredible jon with delivering an original film and a clever twist. I loved his House of Wax remanke and I thought this movie was so much better. I will continue to support his work and I will defnitely be seeing Orphan again!
This movie was awesome! I never really expected it to be anything more than The Good Son but God was it more! Everything about this movie from character development to Ester's crazy ass to the amazing climax and shocking ending....this movie worked on all levels! It's even more horror than thriller at many many times....little bitch was like chucky! But really I don't think chucky has anything on Esther! Great actor's too especially Vera and Isabelle! Don't miss this flick!The best horror film of the year so far!
I loved this movie! It's been awhile since I've left the theaters feeling like I got my money's worth. The girl who plays Esther is remarkable. Max is probably the most adorable child I've ever seen. Great acting. Everything about this movie was good. I love how manipulative she is. Right when she crushed the bird with the brick, I was hooked. The twist was alittle farfetched, but I let it slide since the movie as a whole was freakin awesome. Not really a slasher, it's more of a suspense thriller. Either way, it's violent, crude, bloody and awesome! Can't wait for the DVD
Great movie! My favorite scene was with the bird, "Now it's in heaven." Tense at times, pulled off being funny at the right moments. The character interactions are fantastic. The twist was kind of weird but the movie was good enough for me to look past it; it would have been better off without it, or maybe something a little less off setting. I liked how Ester's artwork had the alternating images, I didn't like the big pieces on the walls, it was a little corny and would have been more sucessful with the simpler paintings.
Like it or not this is going to be a cult classic. I liked it a lot. If you want to see a movie about a creepy kid, there's no way this can disappoint.
Fuck the person who ruined the movie for me. The twist would have been so much better had i not known what it was...In any case, this film was solid and the kids were amazing. Best horror film so far this year. Well, aside from Drag me to hell.
this movie was amazing!!!! the only thing i didnt like was the final twist at the end....i would rather believe that a little girl is fucked up in the head rather than a midget who is 33 doing this.....it sort of ruined the movie for me!!! other than that it was scary and Vera was amazing throughout the entire move!!! Bravo!!!
Going into the movie already knowing the twist (Someone here spoiled it for everyone on one of the news updates) I was hoping to make the best of it. and I was blown away. It was disturbing, creepy, brutal, and thoroughly clever in which they portrayed Esther's demented little mind. Some scenes were eerie, others heart wrenching. This little girl goes from a charming orphan to a psychopathic bitch. You will not regret seeing this. I know I didn't.
Great little film. Vera does an amazing job as always and really carries much of the film. I would recommend not reading the BD review until after veiwing. Though they don't spoil the ending they spoil about the rest of the film. I agree with the review 90% but because I had read the review I felt I already knew what was going to happen to who 20 minutes before it happened.
Great summer horror fun,just what us horror fans needed.Orphan took me by surprise.It was suspenseful and shocking.That Esther is one crazy kid?Highly recommend every horror fan go out and support this film,it deserves your attention.Good to see that hollywood haven't forgotten how to make a good killer kid movie.Great twist at the end impressive and original.Thanks DARK CASTLE KEEP'EM COMING!
Wow I have to say that I didn't have this movie as a top priority of mine but I'm so glad I saw it on the opening weekend. What I believed was cliche but fun nonetheless turned out to be something that totally blew my mind. The opening scene is a classic and the rest of the movie lives up to the high standard set from the first five minutes. I hope everyone on B-D sees this movie in the theaters because in my opinion this is better than MBV, F13, or Drag Me to Hell combined. BTW the mom in this movie is HELLA smoking hot. Well anyway every horror fan should see this movie. It is right up there with Inside as one of my favorite horror movies of all time.
Whoa I am so stressed out from seeing this. really great twist. This film is the stuff nightmares are made of. Don't be fooled this is no psychological thriller its a pretty friggin brutal horror film. Fuhrman may never live this film down she's that sadistic. She scares the shit out of me. And Farminga may finally get the recognition she deserves she was great and so were the kids. Serra is a master of suspense and the visuals are really disturbing and nightmarish. Great flick. I don't know if I'm gonna sleep tonight.
This movie was pretty good, altough I expected more from it. I know this isn't a slasher movie, but I was hoping to see more kills than that!Anyways, I'm happy to see that they are finally coming up with new ideas for movies! Although some things were probably seen before, this movie is kind of creative.Overall, this movie is definitely worth the watch!
I hated it. I already new the twist going in it..lame fake scares(loud kids, husband at the mirror, etc). I just found it to be really predictable(i was laughing at how cliche it felt). The acting was good at least.
This movie was reallllly good, surprisingly! I was not expecting it to be this good at all, the acting was AMAZING, especially the children's! The story was good and with un unexpected twist ending. Recommend this, easily!
Right off the bat, this is one of the best films i've seen in the theatre in a long time! i havent felt so good leaving a movie since the 1st "saw". and the girl that plays Esther, a) she's adorable and i loved her accent in the film, idk if its her real accent or not, but it was adorable. b) she is just one hell of an actress! when's she's bing sweet, she's the sweetest most adorable little girl ever. When's she's psycho, that girl know's how to play psycho! she had some of the greatest "oh shit" and "what the fuck" moments! i really hope she does more films like this, doubt it, but hope so and really think she gonna grow up to be an amazing actress! i cant wait to own this movie when it comes out!!
AWESOME movie, money WELL spent. i really enjoyed it. kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. Esther is a crazy bitch. the ONLY complaint i have with it is that it was unnecessarily overlong, other than that, i loved it.
I don't understand how someone hasn't seen this can give it a bad review. I thought at first that it was going to be lame considering that a child was the killer. But there are lots of twists and climaxes. I was on the edge my seat through the entire movie. Their are lots of unpredictable things. Esther is a very insane girl. I don't have enough words to describes this. This is a movie that you have to see. Amazing.
Whatever you do, dear reader, do NOT let the trailers fool you into thinking that this movie is some straight-to-dvd-bin crapfest that's not worth your time. What we have here is probably the best theater money I've spent since Star Trek this summer. The movie starts twisted, but I must admit, this little kid even suckered ME in with her whole cute innocent spiel. I found myself looking at the mom (who seems to be the only adult who even remotely realizes that something *ahem* is wrong with Esther) in the early going like um... that's not really all that bad, what Esther's up to. I mean, shit, man, I have an 8 year old who's up to worse than what this kid was. Then the killing started. I really don't wanna ruin it for anyone, especially not the ending that you never saw coming... but I tell you, even knowing the ending, and figuring that this movie was gonna blow? I was pleasantly surprised. And somehow knowing her secret made the ride even MORE enjoyable, because it was kind of like The Sixth Sense when you saw it a second time: you see little nuances of the performance of the kid playing Esther (sorry, don't know her name) that you might not even pick up on otherwise. A surprisingly solid movie, and one hell of a good time at the movies. You've been warned.
Saw a special screening on tuesday and man was this movie awesome. Esther is one mean little bitch!! The movie as a whole is great. The twist ending was awesome and very original imo. Esther is twisted as hell! "They FUCK!!!" was the funniest line in the movie. Great job guys!!!
