I wished it would not have been a genre film

Rating: Null/10 (10 April 2010)

*very mild spoiler*
A nice film, but it could have been better without the constraints of the genre.
It's a horror thriller, a genre film, and it works well as a genre film. It is not an original or surprising film, but well done, well acted, and enjoyable for its whole two hours.
In this kind of genre, people have to die violently, that's a rule. I don't blame the writer, producer or director for sticking to that rule. Let's not forget they must sell a product. And still, I regret the way that "Orphan" turned out.
For me, the best part of the film is the section between Esther's first appearance and the first murder. For example, there is a scene when Esther comes down the stairs one morning wearing one of her old-fashioned dresses. Mother: "You don't wanna wear that to school, Esther. I gave you some jeans" Esther: "But you said it was OK to be different" Mother of course has to give in, as she actually did say that when she first met Esther (And of course, in the next scene Esther's dress does cause problems at school...) This kind of scenes, about everyday situations I can relate to, I find so much more exciting than waiting for the umpteenth time for the mad killer to enter the frame and stab the victim.
For once, try to imagine a film where Esther is an adopted child who is different, mysterious, difficult, even nasty... but NOT a murderer. Father likes her, but Mother thinks she is more than she can handle. How would that story end? That would have been totally unpredictable and thrilling. I would have liked to see Isabelle Fuhrmann's great performance in such a film...