ordinary

Rating: 5/10 (19 January 2016)

A couple grieving for their stillborn baby decide to adopt an older child and furnish her with all the love that they had for the baby. The premise is an interesting one for a horror-thriller, and Orphan does hit a few highs. Isabelle Fuhrman is quite disturbing as Esther, and not just because of her chilling performance. There is something manipulative and dysfunctional about casting a 10-year-old child as a woman looking to seduce her adoptive father, and using explicit sexual language. Yes, it is acting, but does the actor have the maturity and worldly experience to give informed consent to taking the role? Vera Farmiga is excellent as the protagonist mother, battling more than one demon. There are some jump-out-of-your-skin scares, and the reveal of Esther's true nature is nicely paced. But the film struggles and fails to get over some gaping plot holes. Why would parents grieving for a baby believe adopting a 9-year-old would be a salve? Why would they not consider their existing two children in this discussion? What authorities allow an alcoholic to adopt? Peter Sarsgaard as the husband sleepwalks through a role that is basically a dolt. Even when his son's tree-house catches fire and his son is in ICU he refuses to consider any plausibility in his wife's theory. No wonder his wife drinks if she has had to put up with this unaware idiot for so long. In sum, not a terrible example of the genre, but not an outstanding one either.