The Orchard

The Orchard (2022) is a drama/thriller following protagonist Lucas as he moves into the town where his grandfather lived, inheriting his well-known and highly praised cherry orchard. Hoping for a fresh start after his recent trauma, he moves into the house he used to visit as a child with his girlfriend Kate. Unfortunately, he soon falls back into drug abuse after being prescribed painkillers due to a pruning incident that left him without a finger.

As his relationship with Kate weakens, he surrounds himself with old friends, one of whom is a drug dealer. Lucas returns to a state of psychosis as she traces the orchard's history, uncovering the mystery of his grandfather’s unorthodox methods, which led to the fruit’s success. Blood.

The narrative of this film is interesting; the idea of involving elements of horror and gore with a beautiful orchard is unique. The story unravels into chaos, which will ultimately hook viewers into the unexpected mayhem.

The film frequently includes smooth drone shots of the film’s luscious setting, further flaunting the gorgeous location. This greatly juxtaposes the darker and sinister mise en scene that follows.

A more unfortunate contrast was the stark difference between high-production-value drone shots and the rest of the film, which did not seem to meet the visual richness seen in the previous elevated perspectives. From a technological standpoint, there was a disparity in quality, with some scenes having noticeable flaws within the sound and camera departments.

The music used in the film sometimes felt extremely fitting and well placed. At other times, it felt distracting and oddly timed; this did not aid in the pacing of the film, which sometimes felt rushed, like there was no breathing room between scenes.

The performance of main characters Lucas (played by Lucas Szuch) and Kate (played by Kate Webb) was strong, but not entirely convincing. There seemed to be an overexaggeration throughout most performances on screen, many seeming melodramatic. The scriptwriting was consistent and understandable, but slightly confusing at times. The couple bounded from heated arguments to celebrating a pregnancy without many meaningful conversations in between.

There was a decently sized cast for this film, which added some depth, although character motivations sometimes felt unclear. One example is the drug dealer character Hubert, played by Hubert Brandys. Hubert’s relationship with Lucas was understood to be a long one, spanning from before Lucas moved to town, yet their interactions felt awkward and full of tension sometimes, then full of laughter at other times. It was hard to understand their past together and may be difficult for audiences to fully reconcile with how they view each other in the present. With that being said, due to Lucas’s substance abuse, he is most likely an unreliable narrator, so it may be a purposeful choice for audiences not to fully grasp the evolving layers of his relationships.

Overall, I applaud the detailed story and management of many different overlapping characters. I enjoyed the darker aspects of the narrative but think some work on the sound effects and music used during the film, especially during more thrilling scenes, could improve the impact of this horror.