Tonight I watched a creepy little film from Hammer Studios called "The Nanny" (1965), starring Bette Davis in the title role, and a brilliant child actor named William Dix as the boy in her care. Dix plays "Joey" (referred to by Davis as "Master Joey"), the son of a proper English diplomat, a true stiff upper lipper with a modulated London accent. He's the kind of guy Monty Python would've parodied, but in this movie he's no joke; a man's man who leaves the child rearing to The Nanny. He ignores his wife (Wendy Craig), who is emotionally childlike herself, and he is rarely home anyway. His job takes him constantly to other countries. Hence, the only adults in the house are all women : The Fragile Wife and the ever courteous but subtly dominant Nanny. Often there is a third female present, the wife's sister Penelope, aka "Pen" for short. She is mentally strong and emotionally assertive, but physically frail with a bad heart, the result of rheumatic fever as a child. So there are a lot of issues on the table as we begin to describe the plot.
As the movie gets underway, Joey is about to be released from a mental institution, where he was placed following the death of his younger sister, a three year old who drowned mysteriously in the bathtub. The Nanny was on hand when this happened, and while she didn't implicate Joey directly, her testimony of his alleged involvement was enough for the father to send Joey to the asylum. The girl's death is ruled an accident, but there is suspicion surrounding the boy, and when we first see him he is playing a mean-spirited trick on the institute staff - pretending to hang himself with a length of rope he has acquired and made into a well knotted noose.
At first glance, Joey looks every bit the demonic child he is purported to be. A comparison with Patty McCormack comes to mind, of her classic character in "The Bad Seed". At the very least, Joey seems like an incorrigible brat - of the snobbily Brrittish type - and at worst he may well be a little killer.
Or is he? The Nanny appears unimpeachable, professional toward the parents and forever patient with Joey despite his ongoing disdain for her and everything she tries to do for him. He won't eat the food she cooks, won't allow her in his room, and orders her away from the bathroom when he is taking a bath. Why is he acting this way? His mother loves The Nanny, and indeed was in her charge when she was a child. The Nanny helped raise her and her sister Penelope. She was never unkind to them, and we never once see her even raising her voice to the petulant Joey, who is rude and abusive to her in every way. Surely he is the disturbed child he is reported to be. Even his psychiatrists think so.
Once Joey comes home, he makes a friend. He has an upstairs neighbor who he spies one day through his window. She is Pamela Franklin (who became a horror "scream queen" in the 1970s). Franklin is older than Joey - fourteen to his ten - and is sophisticated in the ways of the adult world as only a teen girl can be. Franklin was an excellent actress and was also very cute. Here she is ultra Mod, with a perfect mid-60s sculpted hairdo, reading rock magazines in her bedroom. Joey escapes through his window and climbs the fire escape to visit her unseen by the adults. He confides in Franklin and tells her that he had nothing to do with his sister's death. He says it was The Nanny who did it!
Franklin, being the Jaded Teenager she is, is non-commital. She won't take sides at first, but agrees to help Joey by bringing her father into the matter. He is a doctor. Pamela introduces him to Joey and asks him to check up on Joey's mother, who is now bedridden with stomach pain. Joey explains to the man that he suspects The Nanny of trying to poison his mum. That's why he won't eat her cooking, he says. "Then she'd poison me, too".
The doctor does examine Joey's mother and sends her off to hospital (you'll notice I left out the "the", in true English fashion), but as with the other adults, he too will not cast suspicion on The Nanny, who is unfailingly kind to everyone. With mumsie away, Aunt Pen comes to stay with Joey. She is more level headed than her sister (Joey's mum), and not as easily swayed by The Nanny's patronising attitude. Joey thinks he might be able to convince Aunt Pen of his side of the story, but even if she believes him, will she be able to help? After all, she is a semi-invalid herself - ambulatory but with a failing ticker. She is under doctor's orders to avoid excitement and exertion.
The Nanny is aware of this, too. Remember that she cared for Aunt Pen and Joey's Mum when they were children.
What will become of Master Joey? Will he be sent back to the asylum, as his absent father is contemplating? Will Aunt Pen believe him, that The Nanny is not who she seems to be? And is this even true? After all, The Nanny has never demonstrated an ounce of cruelty toward anyone in the household.
But then, she is being played by Bette Davis, in her post-glamour era, when she started making movies like "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane". On a side note, Davis aged quite dramatically in the 1960s, and I was surprised to discover that she was only 57 when she made "The Nanny". She looks to be in her 70s, and it's not all because of makeup. Actors smoked and drank a lot in those days, which I suppose must account for it, but anyhow, she made a second career out of playing elderly delusional psychotics - although I am not saying she is the villain here, it could be little Joey! - and she is perfect as the caring Nanny, who believes that all children need looking after and that it is her mission in life to do so. In that way she's just like Mary Poppins! :)
You know "The Nanny" is gonna be a Good One from the opening scene at the asylum. In addition to the complex plot, the black and white photography is sharp, full-toned, and it adds to the drama by framing the characters in tension-enhancing ways. The director switches from angular close ups to full interior wide shots, to keep us inside the heads of the protagonists while also giving us hints of what is going on behind their backs. It's a very effective mise-en-scene (a term I learned from Professor Tim), and it is, in part, the eerie camerawork that qualifies "The Nanny", in my opinion, as a horror movie. Hammer stepped out of their Monster Box on occasion to make suspense thrillers, and "The Nanny" falls into that category as well, but really it's a spooky and weird little "Psycho"-drama with Hitchcockian flavor. The only question is Who's The Psycho? Or is anyone?
Two Very Big Thumbs Up for "The Nanny", which also has a plot twist that I forgot to mention and am not going to describe. I am surprised that this minor gem of English horror isn't well known. Perhaps it has a cult following, but make sure you see it in any event. Highly recommended, and you also get that great mid-60s cultural vibe in the bargain. /////
Here I am again, and it's now Saturday noon time. I'm gonna finish my coffee and straighten up the joint, then head out to the market and later on to some hiking spot or another. Maybe I will drive up to Newhall or Santa Clarita via The Old Road to check up on the parks out there. It'll depend on the traffic. Have a great day and I'll see you tonight at the Usual Time.
Tons of love! xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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