Children are hidden away under an attic by their conspiring mother and grandmother.Children are hidden away under an attic by their conspiring mother and grandmother.Children are hidden away under an attic by their conspiring mother and grandmother.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination
- Cory
- (as Ben Ganger)
- Narrator
- (voice)
- (as Clare C. Peck)
- Window Washing Maid
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaVirginia C. Andrews: the author of the novel appears as a maid.
- GoofsCathy is wearing knee pads when she throws herself on the floor in an attempt to catch the ballerina figurine.
- Quotes
Cathy: Why are you just standing there, Mother? Cory needs to be taken to a hospital there is no other decision to make
[the mother just stands there looking and quivering]
Cathy: What's wrong with you mother? Are you going to just stand there and think about yourself and your money while Cory lies there and dies? Don't you care what happens to him? Have you forgotten that you're his mother?
Mother: Always it's you.
[slaps Cathy]
Cathy: [slaps her mother back]
Chris: Cathy!
Cathy: [shouts] Damn you to hell, Mama, if you don't take Cory to a hospital right now! You think you can go on doing whatever you want with us and nobody will ever find out? If Cory dies, Mama, you'll pay for it! One way or another, I will find a way. I promise you that.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Troldspejlet: Episode #1.6 (1989)
I haven't read the book this is based on, but have to ask why readers find the theme of incest more appropriate in print than in a movie. The plot revolves around a seemingly perfect family, two parents, four children (all of them unrealistically beautiful)and their happy life - until the father dies. Instantly, they are destitute and all of their furniture is respossessed. Why is it that every B movie follows the theme of instant poverty when someone dies? Apparantly, concepts like having life insurance, owning furniture, etc, don't apply in filmland. Whenever tragedy strikes in a film, we discover that every house is double-mortgaged to the hilt. Maybe this is a subtle comment on American consumerism. Mother's only recourse after this turn of events is to take her children back to her relatives she has alienated by marrying her own uncle. She actually encourages her children to sleep in the same bed, as if "normalizing" her own act of incest by perpetuating it in her children who don't know any better. Naturally, the relatives are evil and twisted, and lock the children in the attic, and we discover that mother is definitely from the same family stock. There are too many reviews that give a blow by blow description of the plot for me to repeat them, but my main observation is that this is a typical copout "provocative" movie, with a sicker-than-usual theme; it "alludes" to incest, without actually confronting it, which causes the story to fall between the cracks in a bad way. It becomes irrelevant to the story, and there isn't much of a story here to begin with. Either the incest theme should have been eliminated entirely, or dealt with frankly. Instead, we are shown scenes of brother washing his sister's back in the tub, undressing in front of each other, etc. Sex is never shown, though it is left up to our imaginations whether they are actually in a sexual relationship or just never taught that brothers and sisters don't undress in front of each other. The only thing that works is the way the characters don't know that what they are doing is wrong, in fact are innocent to the implications. The movie tries to have its cake and eat it too, i.e. imply incest and then chicken out, but gives us insulting implied scenes as if we are being nudged in the ribs by a pervert in the local porn shop, only not as subtle. Implying incest without confronting it in an honest way makes us feel as if we are being manipulated into having perverted fantasies about these characters ourselves, which is the most disgusting aspect of this film, and is my biggest problem with it. An intelligent script could have dealt with incest in a psychological way, as we understand these characters' relations with each other, and eliminated all the sudsy bath sequences (which true pervs will be dissappointed in, as they don't actually show anything) that makes us feel like we are peeking in someone's bathroom window.
An intelligent script would also deal with the idea of family betrayal (by the mother) in an intelligent way; but this isn't an intelligent script. It relies entirely on atmosphere and images of betrayal, which don't work or are extremely heavy-handed. This is a very depressing movie about depressing ideas, depressingly presented. Only the final line "Eat the cookie, mother!" gives it a surreal hilarity for a moment.
The saddest part of this movie is that the actors are all very good; but they are completely wasted, because the script and direction isn't there to support them. Four out of ten stars.
- mercuryix
- Oct 26, 2000
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Cvijece u potkrovlju
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $15,151,736
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $5,020,317
- Nov 22, 1987
- Gross worldwide
- $15,151,736
- Runtime1 hour 33 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1