Review: 'Orphan: First Kill' nearly out-crazies its predecessor
Aug. 19—The Detroit News
The creepy 2009 horror thriller "Orphan" stood out because of a bonkers twist that threw caution to the wind and everything that lead up to it into upheaval.
Now that the first film's big reveal is out in the open, "Orphan: First Kill" has a steeper hill to climb in order to grab audiences and shake them in the same way. And while it may not get all the way there, it sure has a hell of a good time trying.
Isabelle Fuhrman plays Leena Klammer, the "Orphan" of the title, and already she has two strikes against her. Her character is a 30-year-old affected with a rare gland disorder that causes her to look like she's 9 years old. The problem is Fuhrman is 25 and looks it, and "First Kill" takes place before the first film, so technically she should look even younger than she did before.
Fuhrman was 12 years old the first time around, so the youth thing wasn't really a problem. This time, director William Brent Bell ("The Boy" and and its sequel, "Brahms: The Boy II") has to shoot around Fuhrman, framing her up close in tight shots and shooting a body double from behind in wide shots. The constant back-and-forth lends the film an air of campy ridiculousness that the script by David Coggeshall is more than happy to indulge.
Leena stages a bloody escape from an Estonian psychiatric hospital and is able to pose as the missing child of a wealthy Connecticut family. That family, including mom Tricia (Julia Stiles) and dad Allen (Rossif Sutherland), accepts Leena as their daughter Esther, despite her now having a thick Russian accent and a proficiency for painting. Things are off, they can sense, but not off enough that they don't welcome her back with open arms.
Well, for a little while, at least.
"First Kill" heads down a very familiar highway before taking a huge turn off the exit toward Crazy Town, and it makes for an engaging ride thanks to a committed performance by Stiles and director Bell's willingness to both embrace the audience's expectations and toss them out the window. "First Kill" — even the title doesn't really hold water, because the first of many kills is dismissed without ceremony — doesn't quite make a case for a third movie in the "Orphan" series, but it knows exactly what it is and has fun toying with the audience before finally showing its hand.
Will Carpenter is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's Arts and Entertainment/Features Reporter. He can be reached by email at wcarpenter@wyomingnews.com or by phone at 307-633-3135. Follow him on Twitter @will_carp_.
Will Carpenter is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's Arts and Entertainment/Features Reporter. He can be reached by email at wcarpenter@wyomingnews.com or by phone at 307-633-3135. Follow him on Twitter @will_carp_.
