Orphan: First Kill

Orphan: First Kill

After escaping from an Estonian psychiatric facility, Leena Klammer travels to America by impersonating Esther, the missing daughter of a wealthy family. But when her mask starts to slip, she is put against a mother who will protect her family from the murderous “child” at any cost.

  • Released:
  • Runtime: 120 minutes
  • Genre: Crime, Drama, Horror
  • Stars: Isabelle Fuhrman, Julia Stiles, Rossif Sutherland, Sarah Luby, Hiro Kanagawa, Stephanie Sy, Erik Athavale, Jade Michael, Lauren Cochrane, Matthew Finlan, Kristen Sawatzky, Kennedy Irwin, Alec Carlos, Parker Bohotchuk, Gwendolyn Collins, Samantha Walkes, David Brown, Jeff Strome, Andrea del Campo, Alicia Johnston, Liam Stewart-Kanigan, Maxwell Nelson, Bradley Sawatzky, Marina Stephenson Kerr, Sharon Bajer, Maxine Sanders, Sadie Lee, Fred Tatasciore, Adam Hurtig, Morgan Easton-Fitzgerald, Dennis Scullard
  • Director: William Brent Bell
 Comments
  • ryanpersaud-59415 - 27 May 2024
    Colour Me Surprised; It's Even Better than the Original.
    If you would've told me that one of the best examples of a horror prequel I've seen in YEARS (well, that would've been the case had I not seen The First Omen, but to be fair, this came out in 2022) was the prequel to ORPHAN, I wouldn't have believed you.

    I mean, Orphan was a fun, memorable little fright flick from the 2000s, but hardly one deserving of a prequel, right? I think this film goes to show that the idea that a prequel is "unnecessary" only makes sense if the prequel itself does nothing to expand on the previous story. All prequels can work, look at Orphan: First Kill.

    I think it's fair to say that this film has a lot going against it: straight-to-streaming, an older Isabelle Furman (respectfully reprising her role as Esther, the titular "orphan"), and the inherent skepticism audiences have towards horror prequels.

    At first, Orphan: First Kill seems like it'd be a simple retread of the original, but thankfully, due to an excellent and frankly, brilliant twist, becomes something much better. I don't think it's an understatement to say that the film really re-contextualizes and humanizes Furman's murderous Esther. Watching this film and then the original, the story comes off as a tragedy more than a horror film; a story about a broken person whose existence really sets her up for failure from the outset. It's honestly heart breaking at times.

    This is complimented by Julia Stiles, who plays Esther's adopted mother in the film, who gives (let's be frank) a deliciously evil performance here. I actually really loved the tense triangle between her, Esther, and her son Gunnar (Matthew Finlan - who plays one of the most despicable jerks I've seen in quite a while, but believably so). It made me feel like this series could go on for quite a few movies, with Esther potentially exploring different family dynamics (of course, it'd then stretch the limits of credulity).

    Speaking of that, while yes, we have to acknowledge that Furman is a young woman and not a preteen, the movie does a really good job at using good ol' fashioned camera trickery, make up, and well timed stunt actors to convince you otherwise. I'm a little annoyed that some people have forgotten that an element of film is the suspension of disbelief; to say you hate the movie because "she looks older" is so dumb because the film makers did a lot to get around that problem. You may not have been convinced of it, but it's UNDOUBTEDLY a better decision than recasting Esther.

    I was a little annoyed with the dreamy lighting the movie presents, especially towards the beginning, which gave it a somewhat cheap look. But honestly, this movie was surprisingly good. Like I'd recommend it to basically anyone and it's frankly, a lot better than even the original.
  • nikitacpv - 6 September 2023
    A prequel done right
    I have to say I was surprised to see this movie got such a bad rating.

    Rarely a prequel is good, especially if there is so much time in between the first and second movie. I did not remember an awful lot from the first Orphan so got a bit confused at times, re-watching Orphan therefore is not a bad idea!

    I think the main reason for me why this movie deserves such a rating is because of the jaw-dropping (at least for me) revelation halfway through the movie, usually these types of moments happen close towards the end where you kind of know what direction this movie will go.

    I know a lot of people will not agree with this review but I had a good time watching this movie and I surely was surprised to see what happened!
  • jboothmillard - 2 July 2023
    Orphan: First Kill
    I must say that I was highly surprised when I heard there was a follow-up to the great 2009 movie, thirteen years later, and that it was a prequel, knowing the original actress was grown up, so I was most interested to see how the makers would "de-age" her, directed by William Brent Bell (The Devil Inside, The Boy). Basically, in 2007, Leena Klammer (Isabelle Fuhrman) is a patient at the psychiatric hospital the Saarne Institute in Estonia. She is a thirty-one-year-old woman but has a rare hormonal disorder called hypopituitarism, a form of dwarfism which makes her look like a nine-year-old girl. She orchestrates an escape from the facility by seducing and killing a guard and hiding in the car of art therapist Anna (Gwendolyn Collins). Leena breaks into Anna's house and kills her; she searches the internet for American girls reported missing and finds that she bears resemblance to a girl named Esther Albright, who went missing in 2003. Following a makeover, she poses as a lost girl and is approached by a Russian police officer and claims that her parents are in the United States. In Darien, Connecticut, wealthy artist Allen Albright (Rossif Sutherland, Donald's son) and his wife, philanthropist Tricia (Julia Stiles), are informed by Detective Donnan (Hiro Kanagawa) that "Esther" has been found. Trivia, who has since come to terms with the disappearance of their daughter, travels to the U. S. embassy in Moscow to "reunite" with Esther. Tricia brings Esther home and immediately has doubts when she notices on the plane journey that Esther forgot about the death of her grandmother. Esther is "reunited" with Allen who is delighted to see her, but Tricia's son Gunnar (Matthew Finlan) is unhappy with her joining the family. Allen is confused but delighted that "Esther" has developed an interest and skills in painting compared to before she disappeared. Leena grows fond of Allen and bond together whilst painting, using luminous paint, and Leena tries to separate him from Tricia. While Tricia and Allen attend a charity gala hosted by Tricia, Donnan arrives at the house and steals a vinyl record from Esther's room which has Leena's fingerprints on it. At his house, Donnan analyses the fingerprints and confirms that they do not match Esther's. He is unaware that Leena has followed him; she attacks him before Tricia arrives, having followed Leena. But Tricia shoots Donnan dead. It turns out Tricia knows Leena is not Esther, who died four years earlier during an altercation with Gunnar, and Tricia covered it up without Allen's knowledge. Leena reveals her true identity to Tricia, they dispose of Donnan's body in a cellar hatch where Esther was buried and fake him going on vacation by forging an email to the police station. Tricia says it would be too suspicious if "Esther" were to disappear again, so she agrees to continue Leena's act for Allen's sake, and Leena and Tricia remain on guard with each other. Tricia eventually tries to poison Leena during dinner, but Leena is suspicious and excuses herself. Leena feeds the food to the rat that lives in her room and later finds the rodent dead from ingesting the poisoned meal. Leena retaliates by making a green smoothie for Tricia, with the rodent's carcass mixed in the drink. Allen reveals he is going into the city to meet about a potential art gallery. At the train station, Leena attempts to kill Tricia and Gunnar by pushing them in front of a train, but her attempt is accidentally interrupted by a passing commuter. With Allen away, Leena tries to flee by stealing Tricia's car, but she is soon found by a police officer. That night, Leena is brought back to the Albright house and Tricia and Gunnar finally decide to kill Leena. Tricia tries to stage a suicide, but Leena fights back and flees before Gunnar throws her down the stairs. Tricia and Gunnar are distracted by a phone call from Allen, who is returning home, and Leena disappears. Leena shoots Gunnar with a crossbow, then stabs him to death with his fencing sword. An enraged Tricia and Leena fight in the kitchen, inadvertently setting the house on fire in the process. The two of them climb onto the roof as Allen returns home. Tricia and Leena both slip and end up clinging to the roof, begging Allen to save them. Allen reaches the roof, where Leena claims Tricia attacked her, and Tricia tries to reveal the truth about Leena. Unable to save them both, Allen chooses to help "Esther", causing Tricia to lose her grip and fall to her death. Whilst comforting "Esther", he causes her fake teeth to fall out, revealing she is not his real daughter. Leena tries to defend herself by saying she did it for them and confesses her feelings for him, but Allen backs away, calling her a monster. Enraged, Leena kills Allen by pushing him off the roof. Leena cleans the blood off her face and dresses herself as Esther, leaving the house to burn down. Later, "Esther" is moved to an orphanage where she waits for a new family to adopt her. Also starring Samantha Walkes as Dr. Segar, David Lawrence Brown as Dr. Novotny, and Lauren Cochrane as Officer Leahy. Fuhrman is once again terrific as the nasty manipulative girl causing terror, Stiles is interesting as the mother and wife who knows more than she lets on, and Sutherland is likeable as the oblivious husband. I would have thought there may have been some special effects CGI required to make Fuhrman look younger, in fact, it is simply a combination of makeup and clever camera trickery, all of which works well. Elements of the original film are weaved into story, small plot holes from the original are filled in, and I like that the lead villain has met her match with the woman who already knows she is not her missing daughter. It is fair to say that it is not suspenseful as perhaps the predecessor and maybe slow at times, but there is a good amount of tension, you go along with the story of manipulation, and it is still campy and intriguing, an enjoyable enough horror thriller. Worth watching!
  • jasonpauljones-64690 - 31 December 2022
    It's the Stiles versus Fuhrman fight, bring it on!
    The opening escape borders on the ridiculous and I was thinking oh no this isn't going to be good, but surprisingly and enjoyably, First Kill picks itself up from the brink of disaster and becomes a thrilling watch. Julia Stiles is great in this and I won't spoil it for anyone except to say there are some twists that I never saw coming and she nails it big time. Being that she was in Jason Bourne it's not difficult to see how well cast she is in this one, with its intriguing espionage input. Isabelle Fuhrman is also good as the pyschopathic kid that's really not a kid but I have to say despite her efforts Stiles is the standout, mixing whit with humour and fiendish punch, taking this to a much higher level than I expected. The ending was a bit of a let down but the clash between Stiles and Fuhrman is a knockout for at least an hour and the production and direction are impressive.
  • johnhsmith-00056 - 4 December 2022
    Very clever film
    Overall a pretty good prequel, with a very interesting twist in the story. The only problem is that a lot of years have passed and the main actress doesn't really look like a child despite the use of many clever tricks to get around that.

    Another issue that isn't addressed - what about DNA testing? It's not clear exactly what year this takes place, but all the automobiles look at least 2010s, and they are using modern computers, so it should have been a given. They looked at fingerprints, so why not DNA?

    Overall the film is an entertaining evening. It's not going to win academy awards but it's a fun ride if you like thrillers.
  • contacttylerobwallispro - 10 November 2022
    It's pure Child's play!
    And I think that might be the best thing about this movie. I'm personally a fan of the original Orphan, it was a very well made little nightmare. And I'm happy to say this prequel was a fairly good attempt at following it up.

    It turned out to be a surprisingly fun, humorous and bloody film. Which is a hell of a lot more than it could have been. And the twist this time around was well considered and playfully executed.

    All in all I do think that this film should be given the light of day. Even if it isn't great, you'll have some good fun with it. As clearly the makers of this film had themselves a great time making it in turn.
  • stevenrossiter171 - 26 October 2022
    Perfectly fine
    The first thing to say is this is very much a one person show. Esther is a brilliantly portrayed character and drives the whole story forward.

    The actual story itself reveals its twist two thirds through and then kind of loses its way briefly before coming back strong in its finale.

    The film isn't greatly gory although the violence in the kills In most cases is as brutal as Michael Myers at his finest

    The running time of the film is perfect. Short enough to not overstay its welcome and long enough to keep you entertained

    I think go in knowing as little as you can so that the final act has the required surprise.