My 2022 Filmmaking Journey

 Orphan - Movie Review

Directed by: Jaume Collet-Serra

Cast: Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Isabelle Fuhrman, Aryana Engineer

Runtime: 2hr 3min

Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video

A couple, who recently lost their baby, adopts a nine-year-old girl. They soon find out that she has a troubled and mysterious past and she is not at all who she pretends to be - This is the synopsis of the film "Orphan."

[SPOILERS]

We are introduced to Kate Colman, whose a mother to 2 children and a wife, and we are immediately shoved into her nightmares as she had lost her 3rd baby during birth and this was a traumatising event for her. She misses her lost baby and grows a plant from her ashes as a sign of connection between mother and daughter.

After quite a bit of therapy sessions, Kate and her husband John decide on adopting a young girl from an orphanage and they meet "Esther." They are impressed with her and decide to adopt her. The family gets along well and everyone starts to connect. But obviously, that doesn't last very long.

"Isabelle Fuhrman"was perfectly cast as Esther. She seems nice and well mannered at first. But you know that there's something behind that cackling smile of her's which is the beauty of Isabelle's haunting performance. 

In a scene where the son unintentionally kills a pigeon using a paint ball gun, Esther mercilessly smashes the pigeon in pain under a rock in order to "end it's suffering" which shows us her worldview and is a small yet smart character moment. And this little detail comes full circle as the son finds himself in the similar position to that of the pigeon.

Esther constantly attempts murder. She pushes her classmate bully from a slide causing her to break her ankle. Threatens to shoot their youngest daughter Max, throws her in front of car, and even let's the car on with Max inside it. Also Esther manages to kill the son.

Meanwhile Kate (mother) is suspicious about Esther's behaviour despite people not believing her which makes her the underdog. Tensions are high and we are engaged to see how it all comes together and what is the story behind Esther, and why she does what she does.

Then comes the twist I personally never saw coming. Esther in actuality is an adult woman who is mentally psychotic and looks like a child due to dwarfism! Throughout the film, we see Esther constantly painting and that is something we don't pay too much attention to. But near the climax of the film full of extreme tension and heavy stakes, we see the same paintings but this time, exposed to UV radiation which paints a whole different picture (see what i did there?) It was full of bloody, violent imagery indicating her dark past which was pretty smart and imaginative.

Esther failed to seduce the husband John and thus, killed him. But predictably, she dies in the end after several murder attempts by Kate as she saves her most little daughter Max. That was a minor issue I wish went differently and unpredictable. 

But this is a thriller I extremely enjoyed and made me feel terrified with good character writing and elicits a reaction from you and makes you experience something frightening.

-4/5

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