The Guardian (1990)

A young couple with a newborn baby don't realize that the nanny they hired is a magical nymph who sacrifices infants to an evil tree.

Director:

William Friedkin

Writers:

Dan Greenburg (novel), Stephen Volk (screenplay)

Stars:

Jenny Seagrove, Dwier Brown, Carey Lowell

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jenny Seagrove	...	Camilla
Dwier Brown	...	Phil Sterling
Carey Lowell	...	Kate Sterling
Brad Hall	...	Ned Runcie
Miguel Ferrer	...	Ralph Hess
Natalija Nogulich	...	Molly Sheridan (as Natalia Nogulich)
Pamela Brull	...	Gail Krasno
Gary Swanson	...	Allan Sheridan
Jack David Walker	...	Punk
Willy Parsons	...	Punk
Frank Noon	...	Punk
Theresa Randle	...	Arlene Russell
Xander Berkeley	...	Detective
Ray Reinhardt	...	Dr. Klein
Jacob Gelman	...	Scotty

Storyline

Phil and Kate have a baby boy named Jake. They hire a baby-sitter, Camilla, to look after Jake and she becomes part of the family. The Sterling's friend and neighbor, Ned, takes a liking to Camilla and asks her out. She refuses, but Ned follows her and discovers that she is not quite human. Camilla discovers that she has been followed and Ned is pursued. He leaves a desperate message for Phil and Kate which reveals that Camilla has special plans for baby Jake.

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Plot Keywords:

baby | nanny | friend | neighbor | druid | 

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Taglines:

Tonight, while the world is asleep... an ancient evil is about to awaken.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 April 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

A vérszomjas dada

Filming Locations:

USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$17,037,887

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures,Nanny Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of only two feature films that William Friedkin wrote nothing about, positive or negative, in his memoir The Friedkin Connection (see also Deal of the Century (1983)).

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Goofs

When Phil investigates the house of Ned he finds the phone hanging and swinging back and forth on its string. As the phone was dropped the night before it should have by now stopped swinging.

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Quotes

Kate: [stuffed owl] And this is Pyewacket!

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Alternate Versions

There are two versions of "The Guardian": the theatrical cut, credited to William Friedkin, and a modified cut, credited to "Alan Smithee". The Alan Smithee cut has never been released on video but has been shown on cable. It includes new scenes including another scene in the hospital; different dream sequences; a scene of the nanny waking the wife up and alternate angles for other scenes. Also, the ending of the cable cut is different and omits much of the gore.

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Connections

Featured in A Mother's Journey: An Interview With Actress Natalija Nogulich (2016)

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Soundtracks

Waltz For Debby
Written by Bill Evans and Gene Lees
Performed by Bill Evans, Scott LaFaro and Paul Motian
Courtesy of Fantasy, Inc.

User Reviews

Decent enough to give it a look.

Phil and Kate are a young yuppie couple just on the verge of having a child of their own. As both parents are too busy to take care of the baby,they decide to enlist the services of a nanny,and after screening many candidates,they eventually welcome Camilla.It turns out that Camilla isn't quite all she claims to be,as the baby is being groomed for an ultimate union with the tree she is beholden to."The Guardian" is William Friedkin's return to the horror genre.The film itself is well-made and offers some suspense and a decent amount of gore.However the plot is cheesy and predictable and the main performances are rather bland.Sadly neglected English actress Jenny Seagrove is the definitive highlight of the film.Despite some flaws "The Guardian" is worth checking out for serious genre fans.7 out of 10.