Younger movie fans may well know who Jodie Foster is. She’s a
renowned, Oscar-winning actress who has appeared in such recent thrillers as
Panic Room and Flightplan,
and who has worked with such directors as Spike Lee and Woody Allen. Yet she is
probably best known in today’s pop culture as the inexperienced FBI agent
Clarice Starling, starring opposite Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal Lector in the
horror masterpiece The Silence Of The Lambs. Yet
Foster’s acting career actually began when she was all of two years old. Long
before Dr. Lector came calling, Jodie Foster already had a busy career as a
child actor, appearing in such films as the original Freaky Friday, Foxes, and
Taxi Driver. In 1976, Foster starred in The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane,
a little-known mystery that still packs a wallop thirty years after its original
release.
Foster plays Rynn Jacobs, a thirteen year old girl who is fiercely independent.
Moving into a small town with her father, a famous poet, Rynn practically runs
the household on her own as she goes shopping, does the chores and cooks all by
herself. A young girl left who is constantly left to her own devices arouses the
attention of Frank Hallet (Martin Sheen), a known
child molester who is protected from the law by his wealthy and politically
powerful mother (played to haughty perfection by Alexis Smith). Between the
overly-nosey and intrusive Mrs. Hallet and her lecherous son literally breathing
down her neck, one would think Rynn would simply call her father for help. Yet
the reclusive author is always too busy with his work to even come out of his
study to receive visitors, however rude they may be. And so the resourceful and
unflappable Rynn is left alone to deal with these bothersome gadflies, who
begin to suspect that this father and daughter are hiding some sort of secret. And while
the Hallet’s suspicions may be right, little do they know just to what extremes
that Rynn will go to protect her secret.
Based on the book by Laird Koenig (who also wrote the screenplay), The Little
Girl Who Lives Down The Lane is a deliciously malicious little chiller that’s
armed with a tight, taut script and brilliant performances. Foster--all of
thirteen when she shot this film--superbly holds her own against
more experienced actors such as Sheen and Smith. Her Rynn is a gutsy kid
who meets and conquers any obstacle, no matter how overwhelming it may seem. Yet
be warned that despite the fact that its heroine is a child, The Little
Girl Who Lives Down The Lane is most certainly not a children’s film, and nor is
it recommended for children.
It provides a dark look into the underbelly of
society, with its often hypocritical standards--a perfect example of which is Mrs.
Hallet, who is considered a pillar of the community and yet who knowingly
harbors and protects her son, who (as skillfully played by Sheen in a marvelous
performance of villainy) is nothing short of a complete monster. There are no
special features to speak of, yet having The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane
in a crystal clear widescreen print is enough reason for me to buy this DVD. It's
skillfully directed with plenty of tension that slowly builds up to a shocker of
an ending. If you’re a fan of Foster’s The Silence Of The Lambs, then you may
enjoy this film as well.
--SF
Main Review Page | Suspense/Thriller Page |Buy This DVD Right Here!
