“Orphan” is a creepy, yet fun, alternative to a testosterone-filled summer, a small but effective little thriller that features some strong performances and a neat little twist that makes it a cut above most horror films.

The movie tells the story of John and Kate (Peter Sarsgaard and Vera Farmiga), a married couple with problems much more serious than anything the Gosselins ever imagined with their eight children.

Already the parents of a preteen boy (Jimmy Bennett) and a deaf younger sister (Aryana Engineer) the couple decide to adopt after Kate suffers a miscarriage.

They decide to adopt a 9-year-old Russian girl named Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman), a shy but very smart little girl whose only quirk seems to be her insistence on wearing clothes that make her look like Little Bo Peep.

The family soon learns Esther brings much more baggage than her wardrobe choices – she may not be the sweet little angel she appears to be.

For the most part fans of horror films will probably be able to see where “Orphan” is headed, but to its credit, the film works, thanks to David Johnson’s screenplay and a talented cast that adds authenticity to the story.

Johnson and director Jaume Collet-Serra really take their time setting up the story – something that may frustrate some in the audience, but adds to the suspense. I was also impressed with Johnson’s little additions – like Kate’s past struggles with alcohol and a family accident that has obviously created a huge rift between the spouses.

It’s the kind of plot details that wouldn’t work with an inferior cast, which is fortunately not the case with “Orphan.”

Farmiga is very good and Sarsgaard, although not up to the level of some of his previous work, also has some nice moments.

The real star is 12-year-old Fuhrman, who is absolutely perfect as Esther. She exudes the creepiness with plenty of confidence, making the character quite believable, and giving a performance that reminded me of Kirsten Dunst in “Interview with a Vampire” or Natalie Portman in “The Professional.”

I will concede the film probably drags a little bit at the end (after delivering a pretty clever twist) with Collet-Serra resorting to a fairly cliched final showdown. The ending takes a little wind out of the film’s sails – but not enough to keep “Orphan” from being a worthy entry into the horror film genre.

DVD dud of the week

It’s been a rough month on the DVD shelves, with very few quality new releases.

Unfortunately, that trend continues for another week as several more subpar films hit stores – none quite as polarizing as “Obsessed” (D).

Here is another entry in the office-related affair-from-Hell genre that somehow managed to be a surprise box office hit in late April.

Idris Elba stars as Derek, a successful investor who has just gotten a big promotion and is moving into a large house with his wife, Sharon (Beyonce Knowles), and their young son.

But Derek’s seemingly perfect life starts to crumble when he befriends Lisa (Ali Larter), an office temp who develops an unhealthy infatuation for her new boss.

Directed by Steve Shill, “Obsessed” skates over a lot of familiar territory – in a painfully slow-paced manner. It’s as if Shill is attempting to build tension for the obligatory clash in the finale, but he takes so long to get to the point, even a fun catfight between Beyonce and Larter can’t save the movie.

David Loughery’s script is also quite disappointing. Loughery previously tackled interracial relations in “Lakeview Terrace” and it looks like he wants to go that way here, but the film never even scratches the surface in exploring the obvious issues in the potential relationships.

The script is also full of contrived situations that only hinder the obvious resolution (you know, something like getting the temp fired). And the addition of Christine Lahti as a cop adds to the already cloudy story.

But the biggest problem with “Obsessed” is the cast. Larter is probably the best of the three, but she is no Glenn Close (or Alicia Silverstone in “The Crush,” for that matter). Elba is way too restrained for his character, delivering a performance so laid back you get the sense he was bored during filming.

Both are better than pop singer Beyonce, who gives the kind of performance that wins Razzies (the anti-Oscars). I don’t want to pick on her too much because she has shown promise with her work in “Dreamgirls,” but every time she spoke, it felt like I was listening to fingernails on a chalkboard. Her range is limited at best and as a friend of mine pointed out during our screening, she looks like she is reading from cue cards about 50 percent of the time.

It all adds up to a film that is nothing more than a cinematic trainwreck.

“Obsessed” is rated PG-13 for sexual material including some suggestive dialogue, some violence and thematic content and will be available on DVD on Tuesday.

— Thanks to last week’s purge of spam accounts, sportswriter/movie reviewer Micheal Compton saw his dream of reaching 100 followers temporarily halted. If you want to help him reach his goal and get his instant thoughts on “Funny People” or just want to know all things Hot Rods, you can follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/mcompton428. He’ll also talk to you the old-fashioned way, via e-mail at mcompton@bgdailynews.com.