This review was made possible by Paramount+ providing an advanced screener of Orphan: First Kill. Orphan: First Kill streams on August 19 on Paramount+.
Orphan: First Kill is the prequel to the 2009 psychological horror film Orphan starring Isabelle Fuhrman as Esther and directed by William Brent Bell. In this prequel to Orphan, we meet Esther who is living in an Estonian psychiatric hospital. After planning and executing her escape, she assumes the identity of a missing American child, a 9-year-old girl from a wealthy family. After reconnecting with her “family,” Esther finds herself growing attached to the father, Allen Albright, played by Rossif Sutherland, while at odds with the mother, Tricia Albright, played by Julia Stiles, and the son, Gunnar Albright, played by Matthew Finlan. Orphan: First Kill has similar themes to Orphan with an unexpected twist in the third act.
An Underwhelming Sequel
As someone who loved Orphan, when I heard that they were making Orphan: First Kill, I was excited to see it. Now that I have, I’m sad to say that I was disappointed by the film. The unfortunate thing about prequels is that when a character’s fate hangs in the balance, we already know the outcome so the suspense falters. It becomes more of a “how” than an “if” which isn’t as important to the story. In Orphan, we learned the fate of the Albright family, which makes it difficult to enjoy a film when we know the ending.
In Orphan: First Kill, we already know Esther’s motivation, her desires, her murderous tendency to get rid of everyone in her way. While that doesn’t make her any less of a compelling character, everything still feels obvious. We know she has a thing for father figures, so it’s no surprise when she becomes attached to Allen and it’s no surprise when Tricia picks up on that strange bond. Much of the film feels like a repeat of the first one until the third act when things begin to change. It also feels like lazy storytelling to not explain why no one would bother doing a DNA test on this girl to make sure that she was who she said she was. At least mention that the parents waived their right to one, even if it doesn’t quite make sense.
A Surprising Twist
I will say that the twist in the film was one that I did not see coming and after being somewhat bored for about an hour, I found myself interested in where the rest of the film would lead. The problem is that the twist came too late in my opinion. After that, things start moving quickly toward the finish line and I wish the situation could have been drawn out a little longer. I would have liked to see the dynamic between the family after the twist. I won’t say what it is, but it was truly shocking and gives you a reason to finally root for Esther. That’s not to say she’s justified in her actions but it puts a new light on things.
Isabelle Fuhrman does amazing as Esther again, 13 years after she first played her. She’s still just as uncomfortable and disturbing as before. I thought that Julia Stiles was very stiff throughout most of the film but in hindsight, it all makes sense and she played the character exactly as she should have. Matthew Finlan plays the older brother role perfectly, making you want to hate him for being such a jerk. Rossif Sutherland as Allen made me feel so sympathetic toward him, even though I knew the truth about Esther, it was nice to see how happy he was to have his “daughter” back.
Other than the mostly predictable story, unfortunately my big problem with the film was that Isabelle Fuhrman is not a child anymore. I understand that they wanted to use very little CGI to de-age her but I think in this case, it was necessary. Isabelle was only 12 years old in Orphan, so she looked like a child because she was one. We’re supposed to believe that the 25-year-old woman is convincing enough to play the same character in a prequel? While she does certainly look younger than 25, she looks like a young teenager at best. Her features are sharper and more adult. I can not be convinced that anyone would believe she was a 9-year-old girl. It was one of the big things that continuously took me out of the story. If you’re able to suspend your disbelief better than me, it might not even be an issue for you.
‘Orphan: First Kill’ – Final Thoughts
Overall, I wish that they could have been able to do something to make the stakes feel higher but the twist was a nice change of pace. I just wish things could have been explored a little deeper. If you’re looking for a basic horror film to kill a couple hours then this one won’t hurt to watch but if you haven’t seen Orphan, I highly recommend watching it before you watch Orphan: First Kill. It’s available on Paramount+ in the U.S. and available to purchase for streaming elsewhere.
Orphan: First Kill streams August 19 on Paramount+. Check out a trailer below:
