Very entertaining despite its flaws...

Rating: 6/10 (30 October 2009)

..."Orphan" marks auspicious debuts by the story/screenplay team of Alex Mace and David Johnson, as well as a thoroughly engrossing starring turn from newcomer Isabelle "Hounddog" Fuhrman. There's no question in my mind that this little lady will be an actress to pay attention to in upcoming decades; she is simply outstanding. The rest of the ensemble are no slouches, either: Vera "Quid Pro Quo" Farmiga and Peter "Flightplan" Saarsgard as the unsuspecting parents, CCH "The Shield" Pounder as the kindly nun, Margo "Madge" Martindale as the oblivious shrink, and even Jimmy "Poseidon" Bennett and the adorable newcomer Aryana "I really am deaf" Engineer as the kids in peril. Production values are uniformly top-notch, John "The Usual Suspects" Ottman's score is appropriately unsettling, and Jeff "A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)" Cutter's camera-work is of a piece.
I'd have given "Orphan" even higher marks (and may, in fact, decide to downgrade it on further viewing) if not for the plot hinging on some extreme suspension of disbelief. The ending's twist simply begs far more questions than it can reasonably answer, deflating the impact of the whole affair. Also, and this could easily just be me, I found it somehow difficult to feel much sympathy for such an obviously comfortable, secure family (despite the parents' "problems"); I found myself rooting for the "bad seed" through much of the film, since she was the most interesting, engaging character. There were also a number of "oh, c'mons!" scattered throughout the story that weaken it, which I will leave to Constant Reader to discover.
Regardless, "Orphan" is actually pretty decent entertainment if you don't think too hard about its omissions and elisions, certainly worth a rental and/or cheap DVD purchase.