Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, The (1976)
Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Ask her no questions and nobody dies.

Two-time Oscar® winner Jodie Foster is "in top form" (The Hollywood Reporter) in this "razor-sharp story of suspense" (Albuquerque Journal) about a troubled teen with a deadly secret. Co-starring Martin Sheen, Alexis Smith, Mort Shuman and Scott Jacoby, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is a "delicious" (Philadelphia Daily News) thriller that's "slyly ambiguous and hypnotically watchable" (Los Angeles Times)!

Some little girls can be murder! Thirteen-year-old Rynn (Foster) is a gifted prodigy who lives in a big old house with her reclusive father...all alone. Or does she? When Rynn's nosy landlady and a lecherous neighbor (Sheen) begin to suspect that this little girl is hiding a dark and dangerous secret, Rynn is determined to preserve her isolated existence at any cost - and stop those vicious rumors dead in their tracks!

User Comment: moonspinner55 from redlands, ca, 6 September 2005 • New to a seaside village, a young girl and her poet father seem to live an isolated existence, until curious neighbors get nosy and always seem to find the fiercely independent girl on her own... Unwisely advertised as a horror movie, "Little Girl" is instead an amazing psychological thriller, rich with atmosphere and featuring a lead performance by Jodie Foster that is deft and incredibly assured. The sequence where Foster, troubled by the sickness of a friend, eats alone at a hamburger counter (actually, she hasn't touched her food), then wanders down the street studded with marquee lights has to be one of the most beautiful Foster moments put on film. Well-directed and written, the movie is very cognizant of the way adults condescend to or ignore children, and allows leading character Rynn to use her intelligence as a tool--and maybe a weapon as well. Those looking for slasher-type jolts may be disappointed with the picture; it's more subtle than something like "Halloween", creating suspense out of tension and mood instead of outré violence. Foster was at a personal peak at this time in the movies, having just completed "Taxi Driver" and "Bugsy Malone". This isn't the harrowing character study of "Taxi Driver", but it is a remarkable portrait of a terribly uncommon child dealing with very grown-up issues. Due out on DVD in October 2005

Summary: Eerie, provocative thriller.

[CSW] -4- A great psychological thriller creating suspense out of tension; a portrait of a terribly uncommon child dealing with very grown-up issues. If it comes out on Blu-ray I may get it

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