Tame 'horror' that plods along horribly

Rating: 4/10 (31 January 2010)

This had just come out at my DVD store and it was under the horror section including a 'chilling alternate ending' so I figured it would be a decent watch to give me and the missus a few goosebumps late at night.
How wrong we were. I couldn't find any horror in Orphan and very little thriller either for those labeling it a horror/thriller. The beginning of the film didn't set out much at all, instead using overacting to show how Kate had a drinking problem or John cheated on her. Obviously a family that doesn't talk through issues the way they went onto complete tangents when confronted by an empty wine bottle or a 'friend' showing off her cleavage, instead trying to bring their family together by adopting another child while ignoring their son. I must agree with other reviews I've read saying that this family really wouldn't be put forward to adopt a child, let alone just walk into an orphanage, talk for 5 minutes to Esther and decide they want her. As for the orphanage and Sister Abigail, surely it's her duty to properly investigate any child that comes to her orphanage before letting her being adopted by a family rather than rushing in halfway through the film saying 'there's something wrong with the child, I just chose to ignore it much like John is doing'.
The twist could be seen a mile off for those paying attention, although how we saw it after being blinded by a father disregarding his entire family as he looks after Esther and hangs on her every word, believing her over his wife who he should've tried harder to reconcile with, or his son who he made no attempts to bond with over the course of the film, I don't know. Granted, being labeled a horror film, I was expecting the twist to be supernatural in some way, and so the truth that she's just 33 and has a form of dwarfism was tame beyond belief. The Estonian people who knew who she was but let her wander off to America and somehow lose track of them is also ridiculous.
As for the alternate ending that was supposed to be 'chilling', it went past before I even knew it and made little to no sense and leaving far too much to the viewer to decide what happens next. The sooner dvds stop promoting a 'chilling ending' that is lacking in impact or chills the better.
All in all, another 'psychological' film if it can be called that, that suffers from overacting and unbelievable situations. The house looked nice though