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The Nanny

Play trailer Poster for The Nanny 1965 1h 33m Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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85% Tomatometer 13 Reviews 78% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Nanny (Bette Davis), a London family's live-in maid, brings morbid 10-year-old Joey (William Dix) back from the psychiatric ward he's been in for two years, since the death of his younger sister. Joey refuses to eat any food Nanny's prepared or take a bath with her in the room. He also demands to sleep in a room with a lock. Joey's parents -- workaholic Bill (James Villiers) and neurotic Virgie (Wendy Craig) -- are sure Joey is disturbed, but he may have good reason to be terrified of Nanny.

Critics Reviews

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Dan Callahan Slant Magazine 03/31/2008
2.5/4
A rather quiet, cautious thriller that gives Davis more room for characterization than most of her later films. Go to Full Review
Pauline Kael Vogue 02/27/2020
The film is maddening because it's just good enough to be tantalizingly suggestive of what it might have been. Go to Full Review
MFB Critics Monthly Film Bulletin 02/07/2018
The keynote of the film is the Davis performance -- the quietest and most restrained since Baby Jane started this cycle. Go to Full Review
Jeremy Heilman MovieMartyr.com 06/24/2009
54/100
The Nanny is not especially ambitious, so one must settle for the small pleasures and chills that it offers. Go to Full Review
Felix Gonzalez Jr. DVD Review 04/15/2008
... The Nanny holds up considerably well today as a slight, but unsettling, thriller. Go to Full Review
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 11/23/2004
3/5
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Audience Reviews

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Aaron C 10/19/2024 Absolutely classic psychological horror.. Bette Davis shines in this film, first film I have seen her in and I understand why is classed as the greatest if not one of the greatest actresses of all time. I will never be bored of watching this film See more Dave S 08/29/2024 After spending two years in a psychiatric ward for killing his young sister, 10-year-old Joey (William Dix) returns home to a troubled mother and an uncaring father…and a nanny (Bette Davis) who he blames for his sister’s death. The Nanny is a surprisingly engaging psychological drama as the audience tries to sort out who is actually responsible for the tragedy. It’s well-written, well-acted (especially by Davis, who gives yet another kinetic late-career performance) and will keep you guessing right until the end. Despite its obvious merits, you can’t help but get the feeling that it could have been even better had it gone for the jugular vein instead of tip-toeing about and being content to play it safe. See more Steve D 04/15/2024 Should be ridiculous but Davis knocks it out of the park. See more 03/08/2021 Somehow i felt something was wrong with the nanny but not even one idea of how things happened! To commit a crime without even knowing or wanting, that must be worst then possible, worst then killing a man in a car accident. Splendid movie, splendid! Love Bette Davis, and here she s perfect for the job. You guys must see all her other movies! See more 05/26/2019 Presumably, made up to look older than her years suggest, a droll and roboticized Bette Davis (a Davis she had started perfecting in the 1950s) haunts the days and nights of her employers and their children, due to her mental instability. She has an uncanny knack for fooling adults but is not so lucky with children. Her clipped speech is the same she used in her 1958 movie with Ernest Borgnine; it must have made her feel impervious to everything, because her acting skills are all eyes and mouth. This is not the Bette Davis of former decades who could suggest or convey through body language. All she had left was her mouth and words. Some say this is a sign of a great actor. Others say this is the height of laziness. The roboticized Davis works for this film until the end. Many people want the ending to be different and consider this ending weak. This should have definitely been made in color. Black and white in 1965 was beyond unforgivable. See more 11/02/2017 cleverly done film, nice old black and white with old english language. interesting plot some how humorous how it develops. See more Read all reviews
The Nanny

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Movie Info

Synopsis Nanny (Bette Davis), a London family's live-in maid, brings morbid 10-year-old Joey (William Dix) back from the psychiatric ward he's been in for two years, since the death of his younger sister. Joey refuses to eat any food Nanny's prepared or take a bath with her in the room. He also demands to sleep in a room with a lock. Joey's parents -- workaholic Bill (James Villiers) and neurotic Virgie (Wendy Craig) -- are sure Joey is disturbed, but he may have good reason to be terrified of Nanny.
Director
Seth Holt
Producer
Jimmy Sangster
Screenwriter
Jimmy Sangster
Production Co
Associated British, Hammer Film Productions Limited, Seven Arts Productions
Genre
Horror
Original Language
British English
Release Date (DVD)
Apr 8, 2008
Runtime
1h 33m