I saw an ad for this movie on TV, and it instantly hooked me, because I'm a sucker for movies about creepy little kids, so I've been excited to see this for awhile.  I was worried though, as weeks went on and most critics seemed to hate the movie, that it wouldn't be as good as I'd hoped.  I can safely say that those critics are full of crap now, as this was one of the most refreshing and inventive horror movies I've seen in awhile.

Right from the beginning, when we see a nightmarish birthing scene filled with blood and disorienting camerawork, I knew that this movie was going to get under my skin.  Having a dream sequence like that was a great way to open the film, because it sets the audience up so that we don't know if the other scenes are going to be real or imagined, so it keeps us guessing.  Part of the genius of this film is that it knows how to keep you slightly off-kilter the whole way through, so
you're not exactly sure what's going on.  The husband and wife who adopt the titular “Orphan” of the title are down to earth characters who we like because they seem like real people, they argue sometimes, but they genuinely love their kids and each other. The family does  have some secrets, though, and because of this, as the movie unfolds, we the audience aren't sure whether what we're seeing is completely real or if the mother in the movie is seeing things the way she wants to see them.

I have to give kudos to the filmmakers for being willing to show a kid actually doing some of the horrible things that Esther does in this movie.  A lot of movies wouldn't even want to have the suggestion of a young person committing such acts of violence, but this movie doesn't shy away from suggesting that (and even worse) throughout the course of this movie.  Something about our society that really bothers me is that we seem to want to see children as completely innocent and
incapable of doing anything wrong, and that very idea is what makes movies like this work in the first place.  If kids are our only innocents, than they couldn't be capable of doing something as horrible as the things Esther is supposed to do in this movie.  That's what makes the movie scary – the possibility of something so evil coming from something so innocent.  This movie doesn't shy away from showing that kids can be cruel and even violent, and then it takes that idea further and further and even further than I thought they'd be willing to go.  That took guts.  It's very un-PC and unsettling, and I'm all for anything that makes people squirm in their seats the way some of these scenes made people squirm in the showing I attended. Well done, filmmakers.

The actress who plays the role of Esther (the orphan), Isabelle Fuhrman, does a great job fluctuating between being innocent and sweet and manipulative and cruel.  I was so impressed with her acting ability.  She may be a virtual unknown now, but I hope that changes, because she's got great talent that deserves a wider audience.  The little girl who plays Max, the youngest sibling in the family, who is also deaf, does a great job as well.  It definitely sets up some terrifying moments knowing that the little girl can't hear and thus is even more vulnerable to the evil around her.  The kid who plays Daniel does a good job being the jealous, bratty older sibling, and because
he treats Esther so badly at first we almost feel sorry for her until the rest of the movie unfolds.  That, too, is one of the brilliant moves of this film.  We don't know where to place our sympathies at first, and since none of these characters are total idiots, we don't end up hating them all in the end (or hating ourselves for watching them for two hours).

This movie is smart and creepy and surprisingly well-acted.  It's worth a watch (and like me, you might even plan to buy the DVD when you're finished watching it...yes, it's THAT good).