It's sometimes overlooked, in light of Foster's two Best Actress Oscars for a pair of her adult performances, how remarkable her career as a child actress was. She was not only a busy performer but also a versatile one, swinging from TV sitcoms to dramas with ease. In 1976 alone, she appeared in the films "Echoes of Summer", "Taxi Driver", Bugsy Malone", "Freaky Friday" and "The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane" and these were not small or undemanding parts! Here she plays the title character, a young teen residing in a large, leased home ostensibly under the care of her poet father. Soon, the question is raised as to whether her father is actually living there with her and, if he's not, what has become of him? A small assortment of local people come and go, each providing either reassurance or threat as her existence is examined. Sheen is a pathological jerk who has a thing for underage girls. He barges in uninvited and threatens her in a very tough and audacious manner. Smith plays his mother and the leasing agent for the house. She's every bit as imperious as her son, though she's clearly mortified by him and appalled by his behavior while retaining a mother's protectiveness of him. Jacoby is a mildly-disabled teen who befriends Foster in her hour of need, becoming a very important presence in her life. Shuman plays Jacoby's uncle, a friendly, undemanding policeman. As Foster ekes out her seemingly lonely life, she finds out that some people won't allow her that luxury while others make it clear to her that she'd rather enjoy the company of someone. At once a character study, a mystery and a thriller, this film has a few minor flaws, but remains captivating. Foster, outfitted in an unfortunately obvious wig, does an admirable job playing a girl about her own age in extraordinary circumstances. Foster, herself, seems as advanced as the impossibly adult-like character she's portraying. It's an eye-opening characterization and she handles it well. (There is one bizarro moment when her much older sister stands in for her in an unnecessary nude scene, displaying bikini tan lines that couldn't be remotely possible in the crisp, snowy setting of the film!) Sheen is just about as slimy as they come, conveying the idea that it's his right to come into a person's home and molest his daughter! Jacoby gives a strong performance, his quirky, tender persona providing a nice counterpoint to Foster's austerity. Shuman is very natural and believable in his part as well. One highlight of the film is the extraordinary turn by Smith. In her two brief scenes, she manages to inject a massive amount of subtext and a panorama of attitudes into her character. Looking terrific in a pair of Valentino-designed New England matron ensembles, she wrings every possible drop of interest and texture out of her role. Her scant screen time is a lesson in how to get the most out of every moment. It's an intriguing set-up and an enthralling film most of the time. There's a lack of plausibility at times and it's also startlingly obvious at others, but most viewers will find themselves hanging on to see how it ends. The fairly vague finale may not fully satisfy everyone, though.
