I went into this movie with very low expectations, mainly because I knew the twist and thought it was absolutely the dumbest thing I've ever heard. But needless to say, I was completely surprised by this movie and it blew away every bad thought in my head. In was a creepy thrill ride that doesn't let you go until it's final frames. The film ran a tad over two hours, and never was I bored or checked my cell phone for the time. It was also quite disturbing. Also, the acting from everyone was top notch. The girl that played Esther deserves an Oscar for her performance. It's the best horror of the film and it's in a league completely by it's own. I can't recommend it enough.

9/10 (A)

HAHAHA

This movie was pretty awesome/cheesy/sleazy and I knew about the twist as well.

One thing that surprised me the most is the acting. Yeah, the actors were probably cringing/laughing in the trailers while they memorized their lines or learned of their fates in the film (Hello, CCH Pounder!) but they ran away with it and pretty much sold it. Predictable, cliche (the music gets louder and more intrusive, making you think something will happen then - nothing), and very fun.

Some of the lines were also intentionally funny, like the running 'gag' with "fuck," and this, one of many gems from Esther:

(to Danny the son)

"If you tell anyone, I will cut off your hairless little prick before you ever find out what it is used for" /russian accent

Heh, heh, heh...

Me liking!

What a twisted little tale this is - - one thing's for sure - - I'm never adopting another freakin' Orphan!!!!!

What really sets this horror movie apart from it's pernicious sisterhood, is it's patience in setting the scene. You don't start reading about all the later craziness in Chapter Two of Jane Eyre - - No! - - you get page after luscious page of context and character development, and the same goes for Orphan. You've gotten to know this accursed family, now go to Hell with them...

I especially love that there's not a whit of goddamn supernaturality in this whole movie! What a refreshing change for that lazy genre known as "Horror". Nowadays, producers lay on an irrational occult storyline, a couple of jump cuts, and some creepy soundtrack jibber jabber and audiences jump like electro-prodded seals. But like me, there are still some movielovers who need a little sweet-talkin' before we lovingly accept our electro-prod - - and Orphan is just the film for people like us!

The actress is ace - - actually I should say the actresses - - they're both top-notch... which is critical in diving into this perverse little socio-dynamic. Blessedly, Vera Farmiga and Isabelle Fuhrman enact an epic mother/daughter cage match for the ages!

Yup, this one's really somethin' special: cree..., creep, creepy, creepier, creepiest...


out of

This is the greatest movie of our generation.

I did not know the twist ending, btw, and I'm glad I refrained.



As ridiculous and hilarious as the ending is, it worked. I agree with bradley that I was really impressed that this movie had nothing "supernatural" about it, which I was afraid was going to be the big twist, like, "Oh, btw...Esther is an alien." And the acting was really, really good. Despite being two hours, this just kept you fully entertained and creeped out. The work Esther did on Sister Abigail - JEEESUS.

ORPHAN - 9/10 (A)

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.

x2

Wtf I thought this looked terrible...

Oh well.. Your loss.. You suck

On this site that loves horror films it's amazing there aren't 3 pages of reviews for this yet.

I managed to escape learning the twist until I saw it, and I'm so glad I did.

What a "fucking" thrill ride. It was immensely tense, but they also added a great amount of laugh-inducing cheese and other moments, just enough to keep the audience from getting too worked up. The running gag with "fuck" is brilliant. And yes, the scene where Kate decks Esther got a huge round of applause ("WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM YOU BITCH?!?")...

I thought the twist was kind of silly, but it worked.

B+

I'm glad everyone seems to be loving it so far. The twist is silly, but it works surprisingly well. Had I heard the twist beforehand I'd have never expected it to work as well as it did. I'd probably have found it ludicrous (though I'd have been curious to see how it played out). The movie is just so much fun that by the time the twist came along it wasn't hard to just "go with it." I can't believe what a great time this movie was.

People on Bloody Disgusting are loving the movie too. Here are the user reviews:

http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/film/2051/userreview

The anti-hype got to them...

'Cause if you don't see the movie and you just hear the twist, you'll probably laugh. I know that people I told definitely thought it was hilarious.

Pretty awesome, even having known the twist beforehand. Honestly though, seeing 4 straight A's here made me expect more. Still, it's the second best film of the year and Isabelle Fuhrman is a new star I'm looking forward to seeing in more films.



B+

What's so funny about it? Unfortunately the twist has been spoiled to me, but I just thought it's strange that people thing it's funny. I don't find it humorous, and in the realm of movie twists it sounds relatively believable and logical. In other words: It's something that potentially could happen in the real world.

What were you expecting, the second best film of the decade?

But yes, Orphan is formula done right. Freed from the pressures of having an original plot, the filmmakers take care in some great visual puns and generous quantities of sleaze. It's no classic, but when you're a horror fan, its easy to be impressed with anything above par.

I expected the Second Coming, or something very close to that.

pretty much the greatest movie ever made.

B+

Until AVATARD comes out, right???

I don't think they've yet announced a spoof of "Avatar", but I'm glad you agree the movie is going to do so well that it'll get one.