Director: William Brent Bell
Distributor: Belga Home Video
Duration: 99 minutes
Orphan: First Kill (DVD) – Movie Review
Back in 2009, Orphan was a horror movie that gained a certain cult status over the years. Nonetheless, it felt as if it would be a one-and-done deal and the world probably didn’t expect much more of it. Quite unexpectedly a prequel was announced to show how Esther made it to America, and how she turned into the murderous monster we saw in the 2009 film. We were curious to see how the fully grown Isabelle Furhman would handle playing a younger version of her 2009 self.
Orphan: First Kill tells the story of how Esther (Isabelle Furhman) escaped an Estonian psychiatric facility and decides to pose as an American missing child. Even though Esther is an adult, she has a condition that traps her inside the body of a young child. When she finds out she has a passing resemblance to the aforementioned missing child, she makes her way back to America together with Tricia Albright (Julia Stiles), the mother of the missing girl. In America, she now resides with the rest of the Albright family, while already plotting her next scheme to steal all the family’s fortune and then disappear. Things prove to be a bit trickier than expected, and Esther will not hesitate to murder people if this is what’s necessary for her to find new riches.
Movies such as this often have hardly any secrets for the viewers and they often follow a very predictable path. The same can be said for the introduction of Orphan: First Kill, as everyone will immediately know where the story is headed. We were surprised when the middle portion of the movie deviated from the cliché plot evolution and started employing new elements. While we will not spoil anything here, it soon became clear that not everything was as it seems, and we were quite excited to see what happened next. The characters mildly evolve throughout the movie, and the overall flow and pacing are spot on.
Even though the cast is limited to a few actors, the overall performance quality was great. Even though Isabelle Fuhrman doesn’t always have the facial features of a young child anymore, she does pull off bringing Esther to life quite realistically. Rossif Sutherland does paint a proper picture of a caring father who gets reunited with his missing daughter, while Julia Stiles also shines brightly as the family’s matriarch. Right off the bat, she gives you a fairly uneasy feeling, as it’s clear that there’s more than meets the eye to her as well. Other supporting roles have also been handled decently.
Sadly, the DVD version of Orphan: First Kill does not come with any special features. We would have loved to see some additional content, especially since the original Orphan movie already dates from 2009. It would have been interesting to see more about how the sequel was made, and also the reason why it was made. Some deleted scenes, basic commentaries, or even a gag reel would have also been appreciated.
Conclusion
Even though there was no real need to continue the franchise, we very much enjoyed this prequel. Orphan: First Kill builds upon the foundation of the original movie and it throws the viewer a few curveballs along the way. Thanks to this, it remains fresh and interesting from start to finish, and with some luck, the series might continue onwards.
Orphan: First Kill (DVD) - Movie Review,
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