Although Seth Holt is no Robert Aldrich and "The Nanny" is less than "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" and "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte," Bette Davis provides another classy performance from her fright-film period of the 1960's. These films were more Gothic tales than horror films, and Davis plays menacing characters with a depth and skill that raises them above the genre pieces they could have been.
A troublesome young boy returns home after a period in an institution. Despite the patience and understanding of the family nanny, the boy harbors an intense dislike for the woman and rejects any gifts, gestures, or overtures from her. When a series of malicious events takes place, the boy's complicity seems evident, or is it? Although fans of this type of film will guess the truth early on, the fun lies in the chase. While set in London, Davis plays the nanny with little attempt at an accent, but she is convincing and not entirely unsympathetic. The rest of the cast, headed by Wendy Craig, Jill Bennett, and James Villiers, are English; and the crisp black-and-white photography by Harry Waxman captures London in the 1960s and the moody shadows of the family townhouse.
"The Nanny" is a tidy little film of modest aspirations with a talented cast and an intelligent script, even if the concept is not entirely original. Not a classic, but Bette Davis is worth watching, and the story is engaging for the film's tight 90 minutes..
A troublesome young boy returns home after a period in an institution. Despite the patience and understanding of the family nanny, the boy harbors an intense dislike for the woman and rejects any gifts, gestures, or overtures from her. When a series of malicious events takes place, the boy's complicity seems evident, or is it? Although fans of this type of film will guess the truth early on, the fun lies in the chase. While set in London, Davis plays the nanny with little attempt at an accent, but she is convincing and not entirely unsympathetic. The rest of the cast, headed by Wendy Craig, Jill Bennett, and James Villiers, are English; and the crisp black-and-white photography by Harry Waxman captures London in the 1960s and the moody shadows of the family townhouse.
"The Nanny" is a tidy little film of modest aspirations with a talented cast and an intelligent script, even if the concept is not entirely original. Not a classic, but Bette Davis is worth watching, and the story is engaging for the film's tight 90 minutes..