Focused detailed analysis of The Orphan.

The film is about a family who lost their baby and decide to adopt a 9 year old girl who seems perfect in every way. However perfect proves to be far from the truth as the movie slowly enfolds. We come to realise that Esther (the adopted orphan) isn’t who she says she is and in fact is a psychopathic murderer. I will be analysing how the creators capture us as the viewer’s interest through the use of location, editing, camera angles, sound and mis-en scene.
Firstly, the location of the scenes captured my interest a lot when I saw the trailer. The main reason why it captured my interest was due to the fact that the families house is secluded which gives me the impression that they are very vulnerable and alone which means that anything can happen and nobody will know to come to help making the plot seem even more interesting and intriguing. Furthermore, this trailer also captured my interest since the location is quite different compared to other horror films which gives this film a great USP. Having a USP in the film industry is very important since there are so many other films which people can choose to go and see instead. As well as the location, the clothing also gives the viewer an eerie feeling, for instance, the era is very modern and definitely the 21st century as we can see from the cars and houses and school, however, Esther is dressed in a very vintage and olden day dress and her hair is in a very old fashioned hairstyle which shows us that there is something about her which is not normal and not right.
The constant editing throughout the trailer also drew my attention, for instance, while there seems to be equilibrium, there are only a normal change of scene e.g. jump cuts, however, as disequilibrium comes into play, the jump cuts become faster and more recognisable. In addition, the way that the words and the lights seem to leak tells us as the viewers to be prepared for something sinister scary and abnormal causing us to focus on the rest of the trailer even more. As soon as these effects are shown the trailer starts to reveal more, for instance, we are shown the daughter sleeping in total darkness and we think she is alone, but suddenly, as lightning strikes, it lights up the room revealing an angry and disturbed looking Esther. In addition I noticed that at one point, we are shown a few clips of the top of the swing, then of a girl peeping out then of Esther looking. In between these clips there is a short pause which shows a black screen with a voice over talking about Esther saying that trouble has a way of finding her. This causes tension as we wonder what is going to happen next seeing as we were shown that Esther is at that particular scene. Moreover, we are shown the mother running in slow motion which ables us as the viewer to see the terror in her face as she runs to try to save her daughter from being killed in the car causing us to want to watch the movie to find out what happens next.
The types of camera angles and movement also cause tension and suspense within the viewer, for example, we are shown a close up of Esther’s face while she is screaming. While we are shown this close up the camera is not stable, instead it is moving around which reflects just how disturbed Esther is and that something is definitely not right about her. We are shown a medium close up of the mothers face as she is running to try to save her daughter in order for us to see the terror on her face causing us to want to see what happens next. Also, the camera moves in a panning shot for us to see how distraught the boy is.
Sound effects and music are also used to build tension. For example, at the start of the film when there seems to be equilibrium we are able to hear a piano playing softly. However, as the parents are introduced to Esther the playing gets a little faster and louder. Suddenly we are shown a change in Esther’s personality and when this happens, the music stops and we are able to hear an eerie wind like noise as well as thunder like noises in between. These noises get louder and louder as the fast editing increases causing the viewer to brace themselves for an unsuspected ending of the trailer.
The dialogue within the trailer adds to the suspense of the film. Esther says that she guesses she's different which makes us as the viewers ask ourselves in what way is she different. Further on, we hear a voice over which says 'I think there is something wrong with Esther', this again causes us to ask questions and want to know more about what is wrong with her. Furthermore, there is another voice over which says 'trouble does have a way of finding her'. Straight after this voice over we are shown a young girl in the same area as Esther which lets us know that something is about to happen which causes us to wait in anticipation and suspense for what is about to unfold.
In this particular trailer we see equilibrium from the offset. We then see it go into disequilibrium. However we do not see it end in equilibrium giving us as the viewers the urge to want to go and see how this film ends.
From watching this trailer I am able to see that it is mostly hermeneutic since we know and have a sense that something is not right with Esther and that something is going to take a turn for the worst.
From Prop’s 8 character roles, I am able to identify 3 character roles. I am able to identify Esther as the villain, the social worker as the helper and the mum as the hero.
From watching and analysing this trailer I was able to learn a lot about this particular sub genre and how it uses location/setting, camera angles, editing, special effects, mis-en scene, sound effects and dialogue to create tension and suspense in the viewer. I was also able to see where the various theorists’ theories come into play with this particular genre.