For me this movie was quite a find. It appeared late at night on what was normally waste-of-time English-language cable station in Turkey. The syrupy opening theme song nearly made me turn it off, but it caught my attention because it featured underrated British actress Jenny Agutter, most famous for appearing in the superb Australian art-house film "Walkabout" and playing the female love interest in a smattering of more mainstream fare like "Logan's Run" and "American Werewolf in London". Because her international debut "Walkabout" was much more famous for it's incredible cinematography of the Australian outback than it's very understated acting and almost non-existent dialogue, Agutter would become much more renown for her incredible five-minute nude swimming scene than any thespian talent she might have displayed. Her subsequent international roles were thus somewhat limited (for example, even in the PG-rated "Logan's Run" she somehow managed to have a completely gratuitous full-frontal nude scene). Only older British viewers who remember her work as a child actress on obscure BBC television programs would have too much idea of her acting talent.
This movie would rectify that immensely if it ever finds a larger audience. Agutter (a couple years younger than she was in "Walkabout")plays a troubled pubescent girl in love with her older foster brother. When she begins to suspect that he is a serial killer terrorizing the local neighborhood she chillingly begins to cover up for him, but the truth turns out to be something quite different.
The movie manages to be both a tense thriller and a sensitive coming-of-age flick while deftly avoiding the excesses of either genre. It obviously takes place at a time when London was in full swing (which can be seen in the panty-flashing mini-skirts worn by the characters' slightly more experienced best friend), but the movie also remains somewhat provincial and very British, kind of an early version of a Mike Leigh film. This would make a good double-bill with "Deep End", another superb but sadly forgotten film of 60's era British youth. My only complaint is the music, which aside from a smattering of Jimi Hendrix, is absolutely wretched, especially compare to the music that was coming out of Britain at that time. Nevertheless, I would definitely recommend this one.
