The Hand That Rocks the Cradle

The Hand that Rocks the Cradle is the cornerstone of the trashy chick flick sub-genre. Many films since have used the same formula that makes this one a success, and most have failed. The reason this film is almost a resounding success has nothing to do with the plot or characters, however, it's the way that director Curtis Hanson handles it. The man who would go on to find acclaim with the astounding L.A. Confidential directs with the utmost still, and while there are few absolutely shocking sequences in this film; you would be forgiven for thinking otherwise due to the way that Hanson handles every scene. The movie leaves a lot of room for suspense, and every instant is made the best of by the director. The plot seems rather routine these days (and it probably did back in 1992), as we see a good all-American family hire the 'perfect' babysitter. She's not quite so perfect, however, and as we watch her pull down the family she's supposed to be helping from within, this becomes abundantly clear.

One thing that makes this film hard to like for some people is the fact that almost every motivation in the film is extremely unlikely. Would you hire a babysitter who apparently 'just knew' you wanted one? Wouldn't you become suspicious when everything started going wrong after you hired her? The list goes on, it really does, and it would seem that writer Amanda Silver just wanted to portray certain plots and didn't care too much how the characters fit into them. It's also obvious that the script was written by a woman throughout, with many of the sequences being more aimed towards women. None of these bad points really harm it though, because it's so well handled that it's hard not to just sit back and enjoy yourself. The centrepiece when it comes to the stagy set pieces is definitely the one with the greenhouse, which is both psychologically pleasing and suspense filled. The acting is just fine, with Rebecca De Mornay slotting into the deranged psycho role nicely. The best thing about this film for me is definitely the way that the babysitter manipulates the children and engineers situations to her advantage. This may be trash at the end of the day, but it's fiendishly done!

Just the opening scene turns off a lot of people, but that's too because all of the film - all of it - is interesting with Rebecca DeMornay excelling at a vengeful, psychotic killer nanny. This "nanny" does about everything you could do to ruin a family. Yes, she's the nanny from Hell.

I always thought Annabella Sciorra had an interesting face with a knockout smile, at least back in late '80s, early '90s, so I enjoy watching her. Here, she plays a good woman who is married to a good man (Matt McCoy) - wow, there's an oddity in modern films: a happy and faithful husband and wife!

This is an involving film. Once you are into it, you're hooked and the 100-plus minutes go by pretty fast. DeMornay is so effective in her role you just can't wait to see her exposed for who she is and justice done to her.

I did think Sciorra's character would have needed more to go on to come to the right conclusion near the end, but, usually every film has some question marks regarding credibility. The violent, ending scene is very suspenseful and well- done.

This domestic thriller was a box-office hit despite its mid-level marquee pull and is entertaining and delivers plenty of suspense and shocks along the way. A vengeful widow who has lost her husband to a suicide and suffers a miscarriage plans to get even with the woman who caused the trouble by filing a sexual molestation suit against her husband. Rebecca de Mornay is the evil nanny who plots her revenge with relish, her satisfaction obvious as her plans begin to bear fruit. The nanny is not swayed by the innocence of the young girl or the newborn baby she is hired to care for and intends to destroy the entire family. Naturally, the parents are clueless as to what is going on until much later, while de Mornay methodically turns the household into her own domain, holding it in a grip of fear. Annabella Sciorra is the wife and mother who confronts de Mornay in the final moments. Graeme Revell contributes a nice music score.

You have to hand it to the makers of THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE--once the story starts to unravel, you have to stay tuned to find out how this manipulative bitch will get her comeuppance. It's as simple as that. We know from the start that she has evil intentions, but we never know how evil they are until she starts a series of manipulative acts that demonstrate how cunning and remorseless she is.

REBECCA de MORNAY is so convincingly evil that you have to wonder why her career didn't skyrocket after this. It's a performance worthy of award consideration, but both she and the film itself have been largely forgotten. None of the supporting players, with the exception of JULIANNE MOORE, have become household names but they're all quite effective.

The ending may be somewhat predictable--and most welcome when it finally comes--but it's still stylishly done and a satisfying conclusion to a tale of household terror when a nanny's rage goes amok because of an incident in her past involving a woman whom she perceives as ruining her husband's life. Sure, it's been done before, but never quite so cunningly presented.

Much like "Rear Window", this movie brings up a serious question: Whom can you trust? It all begins one day in Seattle, when Claire Bartel (Annabella Sciorra) goes to her gynecologist. She gets the feeling that he's merely fondling her. After she reports this, several other women say the same thing, prompting the gynecologist to commit suicide. Soon afterward, his widow (Rebecca DeMornay) goes into labor. But the baby dies. Now she has only one thing on her mind: revenge.

That's where the movie gets really creepy. Assuming the name Peyton Flanders, she goes to work as a nanny for the Bartels. In the process, she not begins to act as a mother for the new baby, but she gets into everyone's confidence. And if anyone distrusts her...well, let's just say that she's way ahead of them.

If "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" makes you suspicious of your friends, then it's probably doing it's job. Director Curtis Hanson brings the same kind of intensity that he brought to "LA Confidential" and "8 Mile". You may never feel the same after watching this movie.