Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Orphan: First Kill.
Can you hear that? That sound? Well, boys and girls, that is the sound ofOrphan: First Killmania that is sweeping the nation. Despitebeing released on streaming, the prequel to 2009’sOrphanhas been graduallyslicing up a sizable taking at the box officein the past several weeks. On top of that, it is also goingto get a physical media release just in time for Halloween, meaning we are in store for several more months of people joining the cult ofIsabelle Fuhrman’s eerie Estherand embracing the film’schaotic yet creative presentation. Despite taking place before the events of the original, it takes the story in some unexpected directions thatmade it one of the most joyous horror prequels in recent memory.
No, I am not just talking about the revelation from the first film that the young girl is actually an adult in disguise. While that initial revelation was shocking when it first came out and itself caught audiences off guard, this newest one doesn’t rest on its laurels as it pushes into new territory all its own. If you haven’t yet seen the film and haven’t picked up on what this piece is going to be, here is your final warning that thisis going to spoil everything from start to finish in the horror prequel. Don’t worry, you can bookmark this page and come back anytime as the film is really worth going in as cold as possible. Okay, all that clear? No one still around who isn’t ready to get into all that happens? Good, let’s dive into the madness of this movie.
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The film begins with us getting to see what Esther is up to before coming to America. Originally known as Leena, she spends her time drawing and, as one does, plotting how to murder her way out of the Estonian psychiatric institution known as the Saarne Insitute where she is being held. She gets her opportunity when a new art therapist named Anna visits the facility. Thinking quickly, Esther executes her plan to perfection and leaves a bloody trail in her wake before getting in the back of Anna’s car who drives away unaware of her stowaway. Successful in her escape, Esther then kills Anna in her home and begins to research missing children in America that she can most accurately impersonate. She settles upon Esther, doing everything she can to mirror the appearance of the young girl. She then finds a police officer that she fools into thinking she is the child and just wants to get back home to her family.
It also works and Esther is brought to the American embassy in Moscow where she later meets her new mom Tricia (Julia Stiles) who comes to see her personally. Seemingly thrilled to be reunited with her daughter, she brings her home immediately to the rest of the family. There she meets her new father Allen (Rossif Sutherland) and brother Gunnar (Matthew Finlan) who both welcome her back. The only problem is there is a certain Detective Donnan (Hiro Kanagawa) who had previously been investigating the real Esther’s disappearance and seems to be suspicious of the whole situation. He keeps showing up and asking a lot of questions. Thus, Esther decides to go and eliminate him to protect her secret. She breaks into his home and stabs him from behind. In his dying breaths, while Esther gloats that her own mother doesn’t know who she is, he utters two words that will be his last: “she does.” Unexpectedly, Tricia appears and begins shooting the dying detective. We then learn that Esther hadn’t fooled her and the only reason Tricia went along “Esther” is to cover up the fact that Gunnar killed her real daughter. What follows is a battle of wills between the two where they basically see who can force the other out first as Allen remains unaware of any of this.
This all culminates in a fiery conclusion where the family do battle in the house while the patriarch is away on a trip. After Esther escaped by stealing the family car but was brought back by the police, Tricia and Gunnar both set out to kill her. They try multiple times, though Esther quickly turns the tables on them. She shoots Gunnar with a crossbow in the art studio before turning to face down Tricia. They battle in the kitchen, the chaos causing a fire to start that neither puts out. Suddenly appearing in the mix of all this is the return of Allen who had been notified that Esther had been arrested and cut his trip short out of concern. All three of them end up on the roof, precariously close to the edge. Allen must then quickly choose between saving Esther and Tricia who are both hanging by their fingers. He chooses Esther and Tricia falls to her death below. When he pulls Esther up to safety, he is able to see that she is actually not his daughter and is horrified. Attempting to get away from her, he too falls to his death. Esther then walks out of the house while it gets completely subsumed in flames.
It makes for an ending that is glorious and macabre all at once as the film throws the entire kitchen sink at the screen. While the original was more than surprising in its own way, the way this film built upon that and reinvented itself proved to be exactly what was needed to make it all work. There is no deeper meaning or purpose to it other than to just see a bunch of people attempt to outwit each other before eventually turning to brutal violence. It is all about leaning into the absurdity and anarchy of horror spectacle, down to the many moments Esther listens to music while wreaking havoc on everything around her. Of course, she is able to keep up the act as she dons her disguise once more. It ensures she will be able to move on to yet another family, the one we saw from the original, who will remain oblivious to who she really is.
