The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane
Encyclopedia
The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is a 1976
Canadian-French
film
directed by Nicolas Gessner
and starring Jodie Foster
and Martin Sheen
. It was written
by Laird Koenig
, based on Koenig's 1974
novel
of the same title; Koenig also wrote a stage play based on his book. The plot focuses on thirteen-year-old Rynn Jacobs (Foster), a mysterious child whose dark secrets concerning her absent poet
father are prodded by various nosy villagers in a New England
town. The film, though predominantly a dramatic thriller, also blends elements of horror
, mystery
, and romance
.
evening in a New England
seaside town, Rynn Jacobs (Jodie Foster
) is celebrating her thirteenth birthday alone in her father's house; her father is a poet
, and they have recently moved from England. Frank Hallet (Martin Sheen
), the landlady
's adult son, drops by; he is a pedophile with an unwholesome interest in Rynn, and although he leaves quickly that night when his stepchildren come to the door trick-or-treating, the next day he is waiting in his car to offer her a ride. She studiously ignores him.
Later, Cora Hallet (Alexis Smith
), the landlady
, arrives at the house. She snoops about, attempting to find out where Rynn's father is, and asks Rynn whether Frank has been bothering her. Rynn claims her father is in New York
, and taunts the landlady about her son. Rynn's snappy answers and self-confidence unsettle Mrs. Hallet. The situation gets tenser when Mrs. Hallet wants to get her jelly glasses
from the cellar. Rynn steadfastly refuses to let her in the cellar, despite Mrs. Hallet's threatening her with truancy
; finally, the frustrated Mrs. Hallet leaves.
In town, Rynn again runs into Frank, but he is deterred by the appearance of Officer Miglioriti (Mort Shuman
) in a police cruiser. Officer Miglioriti drives Rynn home, and the two strike up a kind of friendship. Miglioriti asks where Rynn's father is, and she tells him that he is working and cannot be disturbed.
Mrs. Hallet soon after stops by to pick up her jelly glasses, and they argue about the absence of Rynn's father. Mrs. Hallet slaps Rynn, and takes the box of glasses which Rynn has priorly retrieved from the cellar; the only problem is, Rynn has forgotten the rubber seals. Ignoring Rynn's warnings, Mrs. Hallet opens the trap door to the cellar and steps down to get the seals herself. Suddenly terrified by something she sees there, Mrs. Hallet screams, and knocks the cellar door support, causing the door to slam down on her head. When Rynn opens the trap door, Mrs. Hallet is dead.
Rynn, after a few moments of shock, tries to hide the evidence; she stuffs Mrs. Hallet's umbrella between the sofa cushions, and goes outside to try to move Hallet's car. Her inability to start the car attracts the attention of Mario (Scott Jacoby
), the teenaged nephew of Officer Miglioriti, who is passing by on his bicycle on the way to perform magic trick
s at a party. (Mario is dressed in a magician's cape
and top hat
and carries a cane, but the cane is more than a prop; he walks with a limp due to a childhood bout with polio.) He sees that Rynn is trying to hide something from him, but he decides to come back and help her move the car after the party.
Later in the evening Rynn and Mario have dinner together at Rynn's house. Officer Miglioriti stops by to tell them that Frank Hallet has reported his mother missing; again, he asks to see her father, but Mario tells him that Rynn's father has gone to bed. This act of loyalty cements the bond between Rynn and Mario.
Frank Hallet makes a surprise visit that same night, suspicious and looking for answers about the whereabouts of his mother and Rynn's father. He tries to scare Rynn into talking by torturing and killing her pet hamster
with a cigarette, but eventually Mario chases Frank away with the help of a sword
hidden in his cane. Rynn now trusts Mario enough to show him the cellar. Down in the cellar are two corpses: Mrs. Hallet, and Rynn's own mother.
Rynn fixes tea and tells Mario everything. Rynn's father had a terminal illness. He and her abusive mother had divorced long ago, and he wanted to protect Rynn from winding up back in her mother's custody after his death. He moved them to an isolated area and made plans to allow Rynn to live alone; finally, he committed suicide
in the ocean so his body would not be found. He left Rynn with a jar of powder, telling her that it was a sedative
to give to her mother if she ever came for her — but really it was potassium cyanide
. Rynn coolly describes how she put the powder in her mother's tea, how her mother remarked the tea tasted like almond
s and she replied that it was only the almond cookies, and how her mother died.
Officer Miglioriti, suspicious of Rynn's excuses for her father's absence, returns to the house for a third time and asks once again to see her father. A much older-looking man comes down the stairs, introduces himself as Rynn's father, then signs a book for Officer Miglioriti before locking himself back up in his room. With all his suspicions finally put to rest, Officer Miglioriti apologizes for doubting Rynn and takes his leave. The man who claimed to be Rynn's father turns out to be Mario wearing a latex mask.
The romance between Rynn and Mario continues to blossom, and they develop a relationship. One day, the two move the bodies out of the cellar and bury them by the side of the house. It starts to rain heavily, and Mario catches a terrible cold. Mario's cold develops into pneumonia
, and he is sent to the hospital. Rynn comes to see him, but he is unconscious; she feels lonelier than ever before.
As Rynn is going to bed that night she hears the noise of the trap door slam shut. She goes downstairs and is shocked to see Frank coming out of the cellar. He has put the pieces together and realized that Rynn's father is gone and that Rynn killed his mother. He blackmails her, offering to protect her secrets in exchange for her (strongly implied) sexual favors. Rynn, seemingly defeated and resigned to Frank's demands, agrees to his suggestion that they have a cup of tea. Into her own cup she places a dose of the cyanide her father gave her, perhaps intending to kill herself rather than be raped (when Frank calls her a survivor from the other room she says, "I thought I was," as she pours in the cyanide). She takes the tea into the living room. Frank, suspicious, switches cups with her and they drink. He remarks that the tea tastes like almonds, and Rynn replies that it is only the almond cookies. Frank drinks more and coughs a little. Rynn watches while Frank talks slowly about how nice her hair shines and continues to cough. The film ends with a continuous shot of Rynn, staring toward dying Frank as the credits roll.
s (by the American Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films) in 1977:
by Laird Koenig:
As a drama
by Laird Koenig:
s:
1976 in film
The year 1976 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*March 22 - Filming begins on George Lucas' Star Wars science fiction film...
Canadian-French
Cinema of France
The Cinema of France comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of France or by French filmmakers abroad.France is the birthplace of cinema and was responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Several important cinematic movements, including the Nouvelle...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
directed by Nicolas Gessner
Nicolas Gessner
Nicolas Gessner is a Hungarian-born film maker who mostly worked in France.His movies are often characterized by strange, quirky atmospheres and unusual cast mixing French and international actors...
and starring Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
and Martin Sheen
Martin Sheen
Ramón Gerardo Antonio Estévez , better known by his stage name Martin Sheen, is an American film actor best known for his performances in the films Badlands and Apocalypse Now , and in the television series The West Wing from 1999 to 2006.He is considered one of the best actors never to be...
. It was written
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
by Laird Koenig
Laird Koenig
Laird Koenig is an American author. His best-known work is The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, a novel published in 1974. The novel was adapted into a movie starring Jodie Foster. He also wrote a play based on the novel.-References:...
, based on Koenig's 1974
1974 in literature
The year 1974 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*The Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics is founded by Allen Ginsberg and Anne Waldman.-New books:*Richard Adams - Shardik*Kingsley Amis - Ending Up...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
of the same title; Koenig also wrote a stage play based on his book. The plot focuses on thirteen-year-old Rynn Jacobs (Foster), a mysterious child whose dark secrets concerning her absent poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
father are prodded by various nosy villagers in a New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
town. The film, though predominantly a dramatic thriller, also blends elements of horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
, mystery
Mystery film
Mystery film is a sub-genre of the more general category of crime film and at times the thriller genre. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of a crime by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction.The...
, and romance
Romance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
.
Plot
During a HalloweenHalloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
evening in a New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
seaside town, Rynn Jacobs (Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
) is celebrating her thirteenth birthday alone in her father's house; her father is a poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, and they have recently moved from England. Frank Hallet (Martin Sheen
Martin Sheen
Ramón Gerardo Antonio Estévez , better known by his stage name Martin Sheen, is an American film actor best known for his performances in the films Badlands and Apocalypse Now , and in the television series The West Wing from 1999 to 2006.He is considered one of the best actors never to be...
), the landlady
Landlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
's adult son, drops by; he is a pedophile with an unwholesome interest in Rynn, and although he leaves quickly that night when his stepchildren come to the door trick-or-treating, the next day he is waiting in his car to offer her a ride. She studiously ignores him.
Later, Cora Hallet (Alexis Smith
Alexis Smith
Alexis Smith was a Canadian-born stage, film, and television actress. She appeared in several major Hollywood movies in the 1940s and had a notable career on Broadway in the 1970s, winning a Tony Award in 1972.-Life and career:...
), the landlady
Landlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
, arrives at the house. She snoops about, attempting to find out where Rynn's father is, and asks Rynn whether Frank has been bothering her. Rynn claims her father is in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and taunts the landlady about her son. Rynn's snappy answers and self-confidence unsettle Mrs. Hallet. The situation gets tenser when Mrs. Hallet wants to get her jelly glasses
Mason jar
A Mason jar is a glass jar used in canning to preserve food. They were invented and patented by John Landis Mason, a Philadelphia tinsmith in 1858. They are also called Ball jars, after Ball Corp., a popular and early manufacturer of the jars; fruit jars because they are often used to store...
from the cellar. Rynn steadfastly refuses to let her in the cellar, despite Mrs. Hallet's threatening her with truancy
Truancy
Truancy is any intentional unauthorized absence from compulsory schooling. The term typically describes absences caused by students of their own free will, and usually does not refer to legitimate "excused" absences, such as ones related to medical conditions...
; finally, the frustrated Mrs. Hallet leaves.
In town, Rynn again runs into Frank, but he is deterred by the appearance of Officer Miglioriti (Mort Shuman
Mort Shuman
Mort Shuman was an American singer, pianist and songwriter, best known as co-writer of many 1960s rock and roll hits, including "Viva Las Vegas"...
) in a police cruiser. Officer Miglioriti drives Rynn home, and the two strike up a kind of friendship. Miglioriti asks where Rynn's father is, and she tells him that he is working and cannot be disturbed.
Mrs. Hallet soon after stops by to pick up her jelly glasses, and they argue about the absence of Rynn's father. Mrs. Hallet slaps Rynn, and takes the box of glasses which Rynn has priorly retrieved from the cellar; the only problem is, Rynn has forgotten the rubber seals. Ignoring Rynn's warnings, Mrs. Hallet opens the trap door to the cellar and steps down to get the seals herself. Suddenly terrified by something she sees there, Mrs. Hallet screams, and knocks the cellar door support, causing the door to slam down on her head. When Rynn opens the trap door, Mrs. Hallet is dead.
Rynn, after a few moments of shock, tries to hide the evidence; she stuffs Mrs. Hallet's umbrella between the sofa cushions, and goes outside to try to move Hallet's car. Her inability to start the car attracts the attention of Mario (Scott Jacoby
Scott Jacoby
Scott Jacoby is an American actor. He won an Emmy Award for his role in the 1972 television film That Certain Summer. He is also famous for playing the lead role in the made for TV film Bad Ronald 1974....
), the teenaged nephew of Officer Miglioriti, who is passing by on his bicycle on the way to perform magic trick
Magic (illusion)
Magic is a performing art that entertains audiences by staging tricks or creating illusions of seemingly impossible or supernatural feats using natural means...
s at a party. (Mario is dressed in a magician's cape
Cape
Cape can be used to describe any sleeveless outer garment, such as a poncho, but usually it is a long garment that covers only the back half of the wearer, fastening around the neck. They were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon, and have had periodic...
and top hat
Top hat
A top hat, beaver hat, high hat silk hat, cylinder hat, chimney pot hat or stove pipe hat is a tall, flat-crowned, broad-brimmed hat, predominantly worn from the latter part of the 18th to the middle of the 20th century...
and carries a cane, but the cane is more than a prop; he walks with a limp due to a childhood bout with polio.) He sees that Rynn is trying to hide something from him, but he decides to come back and help her move the car after the party.
Later in the evening Rynn and Mario have dinner together at Rynn's house. Officer Miglioriti stops by to tell them that Frank Hallet has reported his mother missing; again, he asks to see her father, but Mario tells him that Rynn's father has gone to bed. This act of loyalty cements the bond between Rynn and Mario.
Frank Hallet makes a surprise visit that same night, suspicious and looking for answers about the whereabouts of his mother and Rynn's father. He tries to scare Rynn into talking by torturing and killing her pet hamster
Hamster
Hamsters are rodents belonging to the subfamily Cricetinae. The subfamily contains about 25 species, classified in six or seven genera....
with a cigarette, but eventually Mario chases Frank away with the help of a sword
Swordstick
A swordstick or cane-sword is a cane incorporating a concealed blade. The term is typically used to describe European weapons from around the 18th century, but similar devices have been used throughout history, notably the Japanese shikomizue and the Ancient Roman dolon.- Popularity :The swordstick...
hidden in his cane. Rynn now trusts Mario enough to show him the cellar. Down in the cellar are two corpses: Mrs. Hallet, and Rynn's own mother.
Rynn fixes tea and tells Mario everything. Rynn's father had a terminal illness. He and her abusive mother had divorced long ago, and he wanted to protect Rynn from winding up back in her mother's custody after his death. He moved them to an isolated area and made plans to allow Rynn to live alone; finally, he committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
in the ocean so his body would not be found. He left Rynn with a jar of powder, telling her that it was a sedative
Sedative
A sedative or tranquilizer is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement....
to give to her mother if she ever came for her — but really it was potassium cyanide
Potassium cyanide
Potassium cyanide is an inorganic compound with the formula KCN. This colorless crystalline compound, similar in appearance to sugar, is highly soluble in water. Most KCN is used in gold mining, organic synthesis, and electroplating. Smaller applications include jewelry for chemical gilding and...
. Rynn coolly describes how she put the powder in her mother's tea, how her mother remarked the tea tasted like almond
Almond
The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...
s and she replied that it was only the almond cookies, and how her mother died.
Officer Miglioriti, suspicious of Rynn's excuses for her father's absence, returns to the house for a third time and asks once again to see her father. A much older-looking man comes down the stairs, introduces himself as Rynn's father, then signs a book for Officer Miglioriti before locking himself back up in his room. With all his suspicions finally put to rest, Officer Miglioriti apologizes for doubting Rynn and takes his leave. The man who claimed to be Rynn's father turns out to be Mario wearing a latex mask.
The romance between Rynn and Mario continues to blossom, and they develop a relationship. One day, the two move the bodies out of the cellar and bury them by the side of the house. It starts to rain heavily, and Mario catches a terrible cold. Mario's cold develops into pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
, and he is sent to the hospital. Rynn comes to see him, but he is unconscious; she feels lonelier than ever before.
As Rynn is going to bed that night she hears the noise of the trap door slam shut. She goes downstairs and is shocked to see Frank coming out of the cellar. He has put the pieces together and realized that Rynn's father is gone and that Rynn killed his mother. He blackmails her, offering to protect her secrets in exchange for her (strongly implied) sexual favors. Rynn, seemingly defeated and resigned to Frank's demands, agrees to his suggestion that they have a cup of tea. Into her own cup she places a dose of the cyanide her father gave her, perhaps intending to kill herself rather than be raped (when Frank calls her a survivor from the other room she says, "I thought I was," as she pours in the cyanide). She takes the tea into the living room. Frank, suspicious, switches cups with her and they drink. He remarks that the tea tastes like almonds, and Rynn replies that it is only the almond cookies. Frank drinks more and coughs a little. Rynn watches while Frank talks slowly about how nice her hair shines and continues to cough. The film ends with a continuous shot of Rynn, staring toward dying Frank as the credits roll.
Cast
- Jodie FosterJodie FosterAlicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....
as Rynn Jacobs - Martin SheenMartin SheenRamón Gerardo Antonio Estévez , better known by his stage name Martin Sheen, is an American film actor best known for his performances in the films Badlands and Apocalypse Now , and in the television series The West Wing from 1999 to 2006.He is considered one of the best actors never to be...
as Frank Hallet - Alexis SmithAlexis SmithAlexis Smith was a Canadian-born stage, film, and television actress. She appeared in several major Hollywood movies in the 1940s and had a notable career on Broadway in the 1970s, winning a Tony Award in 1972.-Life and career:...
as Mrs. Hallet - Mort ShumanMort ShumanMort Shuman was an American singer, pianist and songwriter, best known as co-writer of many 1960s rock and roll hits, including "Viva Las Vegas"...
as Officer Miglioriti - Scott JacobyScott JacobyScott Jacoby is an American actor. He won an Emmy Award for his role in the 1972 television film That Certain Summer. He is also famous for playing the lead role in the made for TV film Bad Ronald 1974....
as Mario
Reception
The film received two Saturn AwardSaturn Award
The Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
s (by the American Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films) in 1977:
- Best Horror Film
- Best Actress: Jodie Foster
Adaptations
As a novelNovel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Laird Koenig:
- The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane (New York: Coward, McCann & Geoghegan; 1974; hardcover, 217 pgs.)
- The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane (London: Corgis; 1975; softcover)
- La Petit Fille au bout du Chemin (FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
translation)
As a drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
by Laird Koenig:
- The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane (New York: Dramatists Play Service, Inc.; 1997; chapbook, 71 pgs.)
Soundtrack
Soundtrack albumSoundtrack album
A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in...
s:
- The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by Christian Gaubert (Japan: Polydor RecordsPolydor RecordsPolydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
, 1976; "small press run"). This album has never been reissued on CD or in any other format, and no "official" bootlegBootleg recordingA bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...
s are known to exist. - Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1 performed by the London Philharmonic OrchestraLondon Philharmonic OrchestraThe London Philharmonic Orchestra , based in London, is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Festival Hall. In addition, the LPO is the main resident orchestra of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera...
, conducted by Eliahu Inbal and featuring Claudio ArrauClaudio ArrauClaudio Arrau León was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning from the baroque to 20th-century composers, especially Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Brahms and Debussy...
on piano (UK: Philips, 1968). Side 1 of this record was featured prominently on the film's soundtrack, but was not included on the official soundtrack album. This LP has since been reissued in CD format.