The Blue Lamp/The Nanny [1965] - Region 2 DVD

In contrast, The Nanny has a superstar, the imported Hollywood legend Bette Davis, in the declining years of her career. Just one of three psychological thrillers Hammer produced in 1965 (the others were Frantic and Hysteria), the film capitalises on the popularity of Davis's Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) with a comparable mix of hateful insanity and paranoia. The screenplay skilfully juggles the audience's sympathies between a superb Davis and the dysfunctional family of which she becomes a part, developing a powerful sense of dread which shows such clichéd later fare as The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992) how to do this sort of thing with real class.

On the DVD: The Blue Lamp and The Nanny are presented in black and white with adequate mono sound. The Blue Lamp is in its original 4:3 ratio; The Nanny is cropped from its theatrical 1.85:1 to 4:3, though it's only in a few shots that it becomes obvious that information is missing at the sides of the screen. The print of The Blue Lamp is soft and grainy, while The Nanny is grainy with a considerable amount of flicker. There are no extras. --Gary S. Dalkin