LITTLE LUCIFERA: Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman) sets out to teach adoptive mommy Kate (Vera Formiga) a thing or two about who runs the house in Orphan.
PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. INC.
SEBRING, July 26, 2009 – Big things come in little packages, in the case of Orphan, diabolical big things.
The Coleman family begins to unravel after the parents seek to replace a miscarriage with a child from a Catholic orphanage.
Turns out the child, Esther, is superficially sweet and sophisticated but has issues.
Orphan is about substance and appearance, being grounded yet entertaining emotional earthquakes that upend that grounding. It’s well acted by Peter Sarsgaard and Vera Formiga, and the script does a nice job of spotlighting the tensions and cracks in a relationship that can rip it apart without careful, loving attention.
Some might think it a bit long to reach its conclusion, but the thrills, suspense, tension, and scares are palpable.
Orphan is rated R for graphic violence, mature themes, and profanity. It plays at the Fairmount Cinema 6.
Our SEBRING CINEMA AND SPORTS rating, 0 to 5 reels, with 5 being a classic:
