Das Mädchen am Ende der Straße

I could rate this movie a 9 or a 4, or something in between. It's very, very difficult to decide. What a strange movie! From the first to the last minute There is always a dark, bizarre, disturbing air. The plot is strange, but it grips you. The performances are spectacular. Jodie Foster and Martin Sheen are Amazing, really. But it's definitely not the kind of movie I would recommend to anyone, so I leave the warning that, in order to enjoy the movie, you have to be open-minded to something strange and disturbing. I repeat: it could be evaluated with a 4 or a 9, depending on the mood of the viewer.

This film was made in 1976, when thriller/suspense still had to have some semblance of a plot; innuendo rather than special effects; decent acting rather than explosions and violence.

And for that it is to be appreciated. Jodi Foster is very good as Rynn, a mysterious 13 year old who lives alone in a seaside town, somewhere off the coast of Massachusetts. Martin Sheen, as always, is excellent as a neighborhood creep, interested in Rynn, (he has some sort of criminal history against children).

Scott Jacoby is her peer, trying to help her live alone, and stay in the house her father has provided, although her father and mother have both mysteriously disappeared.

All in all an interesting theme, with some beautiful landscapes of the New England, and the beaches during winter. 8/10.

Wow, where has this little flick been? The Little Girl who Lives Down the Lane is an intriguing mystery, an intense character portrait and a dark, brooding thriller all rolled into one rather odd little package - and on a personal note, I liked it a lot! The film has gained some notoriety (although not as much as it would have if it was more seen) for the scene involving a thirteen year old Jodie Foster undressing - but that never offsets the point of the film, and besides that; it's hardly like the scene has just been thrown in to satisfy the perverts in the audience. Furthermore, the most shocking scene in the film involves a hamster with no naked teenage girl present! Anyway, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is about a young girl, living down a quiet lane with her poet father. Only nobody has ever this man, and it isn't long before nosey neighbours - such as the perverted Frank Hallet and his enquiring, power mad mother comes sniffing round, eager to upset her life. She's not quick to let them know the truth, however, and along with her boyfriend; a crippled young magician from the neighbourhood, she is forced to take steps to preserve her independence.

The most obvious theme running through the film stems from loneliness, and how being brought up on your own will ultimately leave you a different person to if things such as schools are allowed to take charge. This is interesting; as it preaches the idea of social conditioning makes up the person more than most like to admit. The film is often touted as being a horror, but this is incorrect. While the film does feature several macabre instances, and a foreboding and mysterious atmosphere that is present throughout the run time; there's very little in the way of actual horror. The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is much more of a drama-come-mystery than a horror film. The film is probably most notable for it's lead performance. Jodie Foster had already impressed in 1976 with her role in Martin Scorsese's hit film, Taxi Driver - but here she is far better. Despite her young age, Foster commands the screen and despite being a child, her maturity and acting talent shine through to make this a more complete performance than most actresses manage in a lifetime.

On the whole, this film was once hard to come by; but with the new DVD currently doing the rounds, the film should be seen by everyone. The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane fits snugly alongside the rest of the classics of the seventies, and the fact that it has only just resurfaced is one of cinema's biggest injustices. Highly recommended viewing!

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.

Rynn Jacobs is a lonely, but well equipped 13-year old girl who lives with her poet father, while keeping a dark secret in the cellar. Although whenever somebody dropped by she would tell him or her that her father was too busy to greet his or her guests, or that he was out of town. But her life in solitaire is interrupted when she gets a visit from her snoopy landlady and her perverted son who takes a real shinning to Rynn. This is when Rynn goes to any lengths to keep this lifestyle with the help from a local crippled boy Mario, to herself.

This noteworthy gem of small-scale, mystery-thriller incorporates a fascinating slow-drifting character study that has certain believability in its characterizations and manipulative suspense. The macabrely, lurid context of the film could have over-step the mark, but it keeps it mostly under-wrapped with it being more hinted, than aiming for anything really illustrative. But that in mind, it doesn't lose any of that unnerving effect that's spun out, because the confronting performances and crafty dialogues are extremely effective in underlining the disquieting horror that lurks within the film's make-up. What sweeps you along is that the script is lyrically dense and quite thoughtful, while it still generates psychological tension in certain scenes without needing to go out with a bang. There's nothing big or powerful about it, because it plays it cards close to its chest and grafts away with it's involving story and sedated handling. The compelling plot is incredibly well defined by touching on many different aspects that Foster's character encounters. These range from loneliness to her approach on life through an adult perspective and finally that of her estrange relationships with some of the town's folk. It's all about her finding her feet and living her life the way she wants to without the intrusion of others (the adults) enforcing their resolutions onto her because she's "just" a child. Life is what you make it and she's not going to play their game. It's just really hard to categorise this unique film (which, was originally intended to be a TV movie), because it goes down oh so many paths, but it's successful in gelling them together.

Jodie Foster in the lead role makes the character her own by providing a maturely astute performance as the independent girl Rynn Jacobs. Her professionalism really does take hold in this picture and she does so with great control. Martin Sheen is equally as good and believable by playing his villainous character in a very subtle way, but still able to bring a creepy and vile presence to this predator Frank. Scott Jacoby is likable as Mario; Alexis Smith is great as the intrusively stern landlady Mrs. Hallet and Mort Shuman as the caring local officer gives a moving performance. What makes these performances so great is that they have vivid characters to feed off and shape.

Since it was intended to be a TV movie it does feel and look like one, but none of that took away from the elegant looking production. You could tell it was low-key because most of the film did take place in or around Rynn's isolated house. The direction by Nicolas Gessner is carefully crafted and from the outset he paints a mysteriously brooding atmosphere. The simple layout of photography is crisp and beautifully demonstrated. While, the stirring score is quite a strange one with it's heavy handed approach, but it has some sort of a hypnotic trance because it likes to play around with the moody and quite edgy situations.

This under-appreciated find of the 70's is a surprisingly focused and innovative treat that grips you from the very opening.