On the surface, Orphan (Árva) is a quiet, narratively simple movie, yet beneath this, the undercurrents are fierce, volatile, and unpredictable, keeping you hooked to Andor’s journey throughout.
As our childhood slowly morphs into our early teens, our identity becomes not just important but essential for navigating the adult world ahead. Our parents, homes, siblings, and friends all help build this early sense of identity, and for boys, fathers or male role models, both present and absent, play a huge role in their slowly forming sense of what it means to be male. László Nemes’ film is about that growing sense of identity and the interface between reality, fiction, love, and rejection in post-war Hungary, following the failed 1956 uprising against the Soviet Union. Orphan is a film not only about a boy’s orphaned sense of identity and self, but also about a country orphaned from its European home following years of unrest, war, and turmoil.
Andor (the truly amazing Bojtorján Barábas) is angry, confused, and alone in a world where everyone seems to keep secrets from him; secrets that would explain his sense of self, his identity, and his place in a harsh world that often feels alien to him. Andor holds on to stories of his father, Hirsch, who went missing during the Second World War, believing him still to be alive somewhere. Even though he has no memory of Hirsch, his missing father makes him whole. Yet Andor also knows his mum (Andrea Waskovics) hasn’t told him everything, and he knows others only tell him versions of the truth in a country of secrets, lies and unresolved traumas.
As the city attempts to navigate its Soviet identity, and the ghosts of war and failed rebellion continue to circle everyone struggling to get by, Andor’s greatest fears are about to come true. His mother wasn’t honest with him about his father, nor were the countless people Andor thought were genuine. As his mum brings home a brutal butcher (Grégory Gadebois), who thrives in a new era of Soviet rule, Andor’s world is turned upside down, as his identity is challenged in a family unit and city he feels increasingly orphaned from.
Nemes’ visually beautiful yet narratively sombre tale of orphaned identity is simple in its narrative yet complex in its broader themes. Mátyás Erdély’s deconstructed visuals are immersive and atmospheric, while extensive close-ups capture Andor’s inner turmoil and anger, reducing the need for overly explosive, dramatic outbursts. At the same time, Evgueni and Sacha Galperine’s score emphasises the emotional, historical and individual heartbeats of the story. Orphan may be a quiet, narratively simple movie on the surface, but beneath this, the undercurrents are fierce, volatile, and unpredictable, keeping you hooked to Andor’s journey throughout.
Themes of intergenerational trauma, holocaust, rebellion and repression accompany Andor as he walks the cobbled streets. Domestic conflict, violence and uncertainty mirror the battered and war-torn nation that is Andor’s home. Yet, amid the broader themes at play, it is a boy on the verge of adolescence and his sense of self, identity, and purpose that take centre stage in this delicate coming-of-age drama. Here, Bojtorján Barábas is nothing short of mesmerising, his performance nuanced and restrained, yet full of emotion in a film that demands your full attention and patience. It is within its demand for patience that Orphan may lose some viewers. However, for those willing to stick by Andor’s side, Nemes’ intimate, compelling and complex journey through a formative stage in one boy’s burgeoning sense of masculinity is stunning.
Orphan is playing in cinemas nationwide from May 15.
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