Alice, Sweet Alice 4K 1976

Magnificent gloomy detective thriller of the 70s with naturalistic massacres and masterful suspense, quite suitable to be called a horror movie. The depressing music perfectly emphasizes the feeling of coldness and hopelessness of the events.

Younger children, as a rule, are loved more, and in the Spages family nine-year-old Karen enjoys more care and attention than 12-year-old Alice. Alice is a strange girl, she is secretive and cruel, she likes to wear a yellow raincoat and mask, and she likes to spend her time in the basement, where she has set up a nook for herself. She is cold to her parents and hostile to her younger sister, whom she likes to play nasty pranks on.

And now on the day of her first communion Karen is brutally murdered right in the church, and the corpse is set on fire. The parents are horrified. The investigator's suspicions fall on Alice, who happens to have her sister's veil. While the investigation is trying to establish the truth, Annie, a native aunt who hates Alice, is attacked. Now everyone's attention is on the girl, because she has a motive. But Alice herself claims to have seen... Karen. What is it - a sick child's imagination or a ridiculous attempt to protect herself? Either way, we're looking at a few more bloody murders.

The low budget should not be misleading - the atmosphere of the movie is really dark, and the acting is unparalleled, especially Linda Miller, who played a tender and caring mother, stricken with grief (the scene of losing her beloved daughter is worthy of separate praise - so strong and realistic tear), Jane Lowry - her sister, a real heartless bitch, Alfonso Denouble as a creepy obese neighbor-pedophile, living in the stinking company of cats, and Alice herself, played by Paula Sheppard. Only the most famous actress from this movie nowadays - Brooke Shields - strangely looks rather faded among the others (although here she was not required to do much).