The Hand That Rocks the Cradle

Claire, pregnant, reports her obstetrician for sexual misconduct. When he kills himself, his widow, Mrs Mott, takes a job as the family's nanny and starts dismantling them from inside. Curtis Hanson's film was among the biggest hits of the early nineties domestic thriller wave. Annabella Sciorra plays Claire and Rebecca De Mornay plays Mrs Mott, and the film's power is entirely hers. Roger Ebert said as much, noting she did a very good job of being the villainess. De Mornay won Best Villain at the MTV Movie Awards in 1992. On an 11.9 million dollar budget it grossed 140 million worldwide. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 67 percent and CinemaScore audiences gave it an A minus. Gene Siskel found the premise unrealistic and Vincent Canby said the film leaned on tired tricks instead of genuine suspense. It also drew feminist criticism over how it handles a sexual assault allegation and female violence. De Mornay answered by pointing to the shortage of women writers and of good roles for women. Who it is for: viewers who like nineties thrillers and threats that get inside the house. Who it is not for: anyone who will interrogate the plot. Siskel's objection lands and the film strains badly in several places.