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Orphan

Orphan

Horror · Thriller · 2009

After losing their baby, a married couple adopt 9-year old Esther, who may not be as innocent as she seems.

Movie details

Orphan

“There's something wrong with Esther.”

2009 Horror · Thriller 2h 3m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.0 / 10

Community rating

After losing their baby, a married couple adopt 9-year old Esther, who may not be as innocent as she seems.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Orphan?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Fear

Fear

Thriller · 1996

Nicole Walker always dreamed of being swept away by someone special — someone strong, sexy and sensitive who would care for her more than anything else in the world. David is all that and more: a modern-day knight who charms and seduces her, body and soul. But her perfect boyfriend is not all he seems to be. His sweet facade masks a savage, dark side that will soon transform Nicole's dream into a nightmare.

Strange Darling

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Nothing is what it seems when a twisted one-night stand spirals into a serial killer’s vicious murder spree.

Pin : A Plastic Nightmare

Pin : A Plastic Nightmare

Horror · 1988

Pin, a plastic medical dummy, has been the fixation of Leon since youth. Now grown up and orphaned in an accident, Leon brings Pin home to live with him and his sister Ursula, much to her reluctance. Soon, however, Leon's fixation on Pin spirals out of control, and Ursula must face the devastating consequences.

Shades of Desire

Shades of Desire

Horror · 2023

After her twin sister Aubrey goes missing, Jennifer uncovers the scandalous, secret double-life that Aubrey leads - and that has put both of them in danger.

Twisted Nerve

Twisted Nerve

Thriller · 1968

Martin Durnley is a young man with an infantilizing mother, resentful stepfather and an institutionalized brother with Down's syndrome. To cope, he retreats into an alternate child personality he calls Georgie. After being caught during a theft attempt at a department store, he befriends a female customer who is sympathetic to him, but his friendship soon turns into obsession.

Candy Land

Candy Land

Horror · 2023

Remy, a seemingly naive and devout young woman, finds herself cast out from her religious cult. With no place to turn, she immerses herself into the underground world of truck stop sex workers. Under the watchful eye of their matriarch and an enigmatic local lawman, Remy navigates between her strained belief system and the code to find her true calling in life.

Fright

Fright

Horror · 1971

Young babysitter Amanda arrives at the Lloyd residence to spend the evening looking after their young son. Soon after the Lloyds leave, a series of frightening occurrences in the gloomy old house have Amanda's nerves on edge. The real terror begins, however, when the child's biological father appears after recently escaping from a nearby mental institution.

Goodnight Mommy

Goodnight Mommy

Horror · 2022

When twin brothers arrive home to find their mother’s demeanor altered and face covered in surgical bandages, they begin to suspect the woman beneath the gauze might not be their mother.

The Final

The Final

Thriller · 2010

A group of high school outcasts get revenge on the students that torment them.

Curse of Chucky

Curse of Chucky

Horror · 2013

After her mother's mysterious death, Nica begins to suspect that the talking, red-haired doll her visiting niece has been playing with may be the key to the mounting bloodshed and chaos.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Jaume Collet-Serra

Written by

Alex Mace · David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick

Vera Farmiga

Vera Farmiga

Kate

Peter Sarsgaard

Peter Sarsgaard

John

Isabelle Fuhrman

Isabelle Fuhrman

Esther

CCH Pounder

CCH Pounder

Sister Abigail

Jimmy Bennett

Jimmy Bennett

Daniel

Margo Martindale

Margo Martindale

Dr. Browning

Karel Roden

Karel Roden

Dr. Värava

Court is in session

Put Orphan on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Big-Idea Head

“Its refusal to behave is the point.”

The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.

The prosecution The Sentimental Softie

“Oddness is not depth.”

A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.