8 of 10 for its being a different Davis role; it's certainly not splashy like "Jezebel" or "All About Eve" but she nails the prim, proper and (way repressed) Nanny just right. I recall seeing this on tv as a kid in the late 1960's and being really creeped out.
Years later, it's easier to appreciate the quiet fineness of Davis' performance. In this outing, she undertakes no running around in theater circuits, setting her cap for eligible bachelors, or even torturing wheelchair-bound relatives--she is the epitome of the proper British nanny , and she manages to convey affection for her charges even as she gradually unhinges. The other adult characters are a bit on the two-dimensional side, but the young boy--her nemesis throughout the film--is convincing, as is his sometime-sidekick from the flat upstairs (a young Pamela Franklin.) Worth a watch if you haven't seen it.
Years later, it's easier to appreciate the quiet fineness of Davis' performance. In this outing, she undertakes no running around in theater circuits, setting her cap for eligible bachelors, or even torturing wheelchair-bound relatives--she is the epitome of the proper British nanny , and she manages to convey affection for her charges even as she gradually unhinges. The other adult characters are a bit on the two-dimensional side, but the young boy--her nemesis throughout the film--is convincing, as is his sometime-sidekick from the flat upstairs (a young Pamela Franklin.) Worth a watch if you haven't seen it.