The Orphanage by the Lake

The Orphanage by the Lake is a psychological thriller that plays with the classic tropes of noir detective fiction. Noir fiction is a style of film and literature in which the protagonist, often a detective or private investigator, is forced to navigate a bleak landscape and social environment to solve a crime or uncover information. It is a style that came to prominence in crime fiction in the 1930s and 1940s with novels like The Big Sleep (1939) by Raymond Chandler and The Postman Always Rings Twice (1934) by James M. Cain. Both of these works, along with many others, were made into films that have markedly black and gray color palettes in keeping with the dreary “noir” style.

The Orphanage by the Lake has many elements that conform to traditional noir crime tropes. Like Raymond Chandler’s iconic Philip Marlow, Hazel Cho is a private detective who is struggling to make ends meet, drinks too much alcohol, and does not take very good care of herself. Like in any detective noir, her life changes when a tall, rich, beautiful blond woman walks into her office with a mysterious case.