History Theatre / Orphans

* {{CharacterCatchphrase}}: Harold's favorite way of describing orphans and juvenile delinquents is "Dead end kids".

* {{Catchphrase}}: Harold's favorite way of describing orphans and juvenile delinquents is "Dead end kids".

''Orphans'' is a play by Lyle Kessler. It Premiered in 1983 with the Matrix Theatre Company in LA, and has since been widely performed, including on Broadway, the Steppenwolf, and the Appollo Theatres.

!!This film provides examples of:

The play tells the story of two young brothers - Treat and Phillip, who were orphaned in early childhood and have since lived independently in an abandoned, decrepit house in Philadelphia. Treat, the older of the two brothers, provides for the household through petty theft. Meanwhile, Philip has been effectively infantilized by his older brother - he's not allowed to leave the house (Treat tells his brother than if he does venture outside, his allergies to pollen will kill him). Treat does this partly because of his violent and controlling nature, but ultimately he bullies his brother because he fears that he'll lose Phillip, the only family he has left, just as he's lost his parents.

* WickedCultured: Harold is a high-ranking Chicago gangster who happens to be well-read, very eloquent in his speech, and a good cook. In the movie, he's seen reading a novel by Creator/GrahamGreeneAuthor.

Creator/AlanJPakula adapted Kessler's play into a film starring Creator/AlbertFinney as Harold, Creator/MatthewModine as Treat, and Creator/KevinAnderson as Phillip. Finney and Anderson appeared in the same roles in the play's London and Broadway premiers, respectively.

* WickedCultured: Harold is a high-ranking Chicago gangster who happens to be well-read, very eloquent in his speech, and a good cook. In the movie, he's seen reading a novel by Creator/GrahamGreeneAuthor.

* WickedCultured: Harold is a high-ranking Chicago gangster who happens to be well-read, cultured, and a good cook. In the movie, he's seen reading a novel by Creator/GrahamGreeneAuthor.

* SmarterThanYouLook: Despite being isolated at home with no social contact apart from his older brother and having schooling, Phillip tought himself how to read and speaks with the vocabulary and grammar of an educated person.

* EveryoneHasStandards: Thief and street thug though he is, Treat can't stand to see helpless elderly people being mistreated by rude drivers and pedestrians.

Creator/AlanJPakula adapted Kessler's play into a film starring Creator/AlbertFinney as Harold, Creator/MatthewModine as Treat, and Creator/KevinAnderson as Phillip. Finney and Anderson appeared in the same roles in the play's London and Broadway preimiers, respectively.

The play tells the story of two young brothers - Treat and Phillip, who were orphaned in early childhood and have since lived independently in an abandoned, decrepit house in Philadelphia. Treat, the older of the two brothers, provides for the household through petty theft. Meanwhile, Philip has been effectively infantilized by his older brother - he's not allowed to leave the house (Treat tells his brother than if he does venture outside, his allergies to pollen will kill him). Treat does this partly because of his violent and controlling nature, but ultimately he bullies his brother because he fears that he'll lose Philip, the only family he has left, just as he's lost his parents.

The play tells the story of two young brothers - Treat and Philip, who were orphaned in early childhood and have since lived independently in an abandoned, decrepit house in Philadelphia. Treat, the older of the two brothers, provides for the household through petty theft. Meanwhile, Philip has been effectively infantilized by his older brother - he's not allowed to leave the house (Treat tells his brother than if he does venture outside, his allergies to pollen will kill him). Treat does this partly because of his violent and controlling nature, but ultimately he bullies his brother because he fears that he'll lose Philip, the only family he has left, just as he's lost his parents.

Harold turns out to be a very wealthy and powerful Chicago gangster. However, rather than taking revenge on the two brothers, he feels as sense of affinity for both of them, having been an orphan himself. Over time, Harold becomes the only father figure Treat and Phillip have ever had - helping them out financially, offering Phillip a job as his "bodyguard" (mostly just running errands), fixing up their house, and teaching them the ways of the world. Most importantly, he helps Phillip realize that he has what it takes to function in the outside world.

* TheSyndicate: Judging by the amount of cash and bonds Harold carries around, he operates at a very high level of whatever mob outfit he works for (or runs).

* UnsafeHaven: Harold uses Treat and Phillip's house as a hide-out, which proves to be a mistake as Treat's reckless behavior draws more attention to them.

* SmarterThanYouLook: Despite being isolated at home with no social contact apart from his older brother and having schooling, Phillip tought himself how to read and speaks with the vocabulary and grammar of an educated person.

Harold is a wealthy and powerful Chicago gangster. However, rather than taking revenge on the two brothers, he feels as sense of affinity for both of them, having been an orphan himself. Over time, Harold becomes the only father figure Treat and Phillip have ever had - helping them out financially, offering Phillip a job as his "bodyguard" (mostly just running errands), fixing up their house, and teaching them the ways of the world. Most importantly, he helps Phillip realize that he has what it takes to function in the outside world.

* FreudeanExcuse: A great deal of Treat's controlling and bullying behavior towards his brother is driven by Treat's fear of being abandoned by the only family he has left. Therefore, Treat has intentionally tried to keep Phillip as helpless as possible to prevent him from going off and living on his own.

* Oireland: Harold plays up his Irish background by speaking in an exaggerated Irish accent in several scenes.

The play and the film have no connection to [[Literature/{{Orphans}} the Creator/VCAndrews novel of the same name]].

The play and the film have no connection to [[Literature/Orphans the Creator/VCAndrews novel of the same name]].

* Foreshadowing: Harold discovers that one of his associates has been murdered by rival gangsters.

Harold is a wealthy and powerful Chicago Gangster. However, rather than taking revenge on the two brothers, he feels as sense of affinity for both of them, having been an orphan himself. Over time, Harold becomes the only father figure Treat and Phillip have ever had - helping them out financially, offering Phillip a job as his "bodyguard" (mostly just running errands), fixing up their house, and teaching them the ways of the world. Most importantly, he helps Phillip realize that he has what it takes to function in the outside world.

* ChicagoGangster: Harold