The Bad Seed

[Rob Lowe as director] generates a few moments of eerie suspense, and one or two silly-scary scenes produce the right combination of gasps and laughter. He also gets a sturdy, believably perplexed performance from his leading man. Even better is Grace.

This cardboard-cutout quality extends to the dialogue scenes between the adult actors, where Lowe’s inexperience as a director really shows. ... The only really convincing acting in the film is in the scenes between Lowe and Grace, a couple of which are compelling enough to almost redeem the film as a whole.

Grace’s performance is the only element of the film that seems campy by intent--she is delightful as a tyke who sets a murderous scheme in motion and then kicks back with a juice box. ... A taste for in-jokes may indicate the film’s cognizance that it cannot be taken too seriously. ... [Lowe] is merely coasting along as a heartthrob emeritus.

It suffers from being neither dark enough nor campy enough--either choice would have been a lot more enjoyable. But it is stuck in a middle area that is devoid of over-the-top absurdity or any real darkness.