The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane Has a Startling Secret

I am not a fan of horror movies, but I’m inclined to enjoy thrillers as long as they aren’t too violent. That’s especially the case if the cast includes an actor I especially like. The Sixth Sense turned me into a Haley Joel Osment fan, while Jodie Foster’s presence helped sell me on watching The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, the 1976 movie in which she stars as a 13-year-old who arouses suspicion when she moves into a fancy house on the outskirts of a close-knit community.

Foster is Rynn, a resourceful teen who shows an impressive ability to fend for herself. It doesn’t take long for the audience to realize that rather than living with her father, as she claims to anyone who asks, Rynn is living alone. She stays in as much as possible, pretending to be home-schooled, and in a sense this is true, except that she is her own teacher. It’s a system that works well with most people, but two particularly nosy neighbors threaten her lifestyle.

Alexis Smith is the quintessential busybody as Mrs. Hallet. Of course, she has a right to be involved; after all, she is the landlady. Nonetheless, she takes her role to an unpleasant extreme, making it very difficult for Rynn to maintain her ruse. Even more obnoxious is her son Frank, who Martin Sheen makes thoroughly creepy from the moment he first appears at her door on Halloween. He has a reputation as the town pervert, which helps Rynn to keep her distance from him in public, but keeping him out of her house is a more difficult matter.

Happily, Rynn does have a couple of townsfolk looking out for her. She finds a fast friend and firm protector in Miglioriti, a mild-mannered cop played by Mort Shuman. While he has his suspicions about her living situation, he is a fairly trusting soul, and his main concern is that she is safe and well cared for, so he’s not that difficult to appease. The only person Rynn truly confides in is his nephew Mario (Scott Jacoby), an aspiring magician just a little older than her who offers her a first taste of romance.

While there is something vaguely unsettling about Foster in this role, she remains sympathetic, a kid with a lot stacked against her who is just trying to make the best of her lot in life. She and Jacoby work well together, making an appealing team, while Shuman simply makes me smile whenever he’s on screen because he exudes salt-of-the-earth good-heartedness. The major creep factor comes in with Sheen, who I’m used to seeing in much more likable roles. He serves as the primary antagonist here, and he really makes you just want to throttle him.

The musical score is interesting, with suspenseful moments often punctuated with surprisingly upbeat music, while the cinematography sets a lonely tone fitting for the tale of a girl who lives in such isolation. There is a bit of violence, particularly a cringe-worthy moment involving a very vulnerable character, but most of the unpleasantness is left to the imagination, so it never got too intense for me to continue watching. It’s a rather strange movie, but that strangeness is part of its appeal. If you’re looking for something just a little spooky, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is a good pick.