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The Girl Next Door is a 2007 psychological horror-thriller directed by Gregory M. Wilson, based on Jack Ketchum's novel of the same name. Written by Daniel Farrands and Philip Nutman, the script catches the terrible and sad events occurring in a suburban quiet neighborhood. The real-life murder of Sylvia Likens inspires the film and lends an uncomfortable and profoundly disturbing tone.
The Girl Next Door is based on the real account of Sylvia Likens, who in 1965 was killed under torture by a family friend. The case reminds viewers that cruelty exists in the world, adding another level of horror to the movie.
After losing her parents, young Meg Loughlin moves in with her aunt Ruth Chandler and her sons. The sadistic Ruth starts torturing Meg, and shortly local youngsters start participating in the cruelty. Meg suffers as the torture gets more intense, and no one steps in to offer relief.
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The finale is emotional as well as terrible. Meg succumbs to her injuries after protracted suffering but not before one last attempt at escape guided by her neighbor, David. Let's dissect the events of this gut-wrenching finale.
Exploring The Girl Next Door ending
The start of Meg’s torture
Meg’s suffering begins early in the movie. The Girl Next Door sets the stage for a series of violent acts led by Ruth Chandler and her sons. Meg is tied up, humiliated and abused while the neighborhood children watch and participate. Ruth's authority keeps everyone silent, leaving Meg defenseless.
Meg tries to escape, but each attempt ends in more suffering. Despite the abuse getting reported, the authorities fail to help. This lack of intervention pushes the situation into a terrifying spiral, leading to the eventual tragedy.
David’s role and failed rescue attempt
As a local lad, David sees The Girl Next Door events but finds behaving difficult. He releases Meg's restraints to try to assist her and even urges her to flee. Meg is caught trying to save her disabled sister Susan, though.
David struggles with his inability to stop the abuse throughout the movie. He wants to save Meg but is afraid of Ruth. His attempts at assistance eventually fail, which results in the last, permanent acts of violence directed against Meg.
Read more: The Girl Next Door soundtrack: A definitive guide
Ruth’s final act of cruelty
Ruth takes the abuse to an unthinkable degree in the The Girl Next Door's climax. She twists horrible messages into Meg's body and even muses over burning her with a blowtorch. Representing the entire dehumanization of Meg, the sequence is among the most startling events in the film.
For David, who at last acts, the violence gets excessive. He strikes Ruth with a crutch after starting a fire to generate diversion. Although he stops Ruth, the damage has already been done.
The death of Meg
Although David tries, Meg's injuries are too severe. She tells David that she loves him and appreciates him for his help during her last hours.
Meg dies from her wounds, a victim of constant abuse, making for a moving scene. The terrible end of The Girl Next Door marks leaves the audience reflecting on the horror they have seen.
David’s reflection on the present
The movie doesn't end with Meg's death. Instead, The Girl Next Door shifts back to the present, where the adult David reflects on the events of his childhood. He's deeply affected by his failure to save Meg, and her memory continues to haunt him.
The haunting guilt
David's guilt over Meg's death is evident throughout the movie. His inability to act sooner weighs heavily on him, and this trauma follows him for the rest of his life. The movie closes with David reflecting on Meg’s words: it’s what you do last that counts.
The real-life parallels
Like Meg in The Girl Next Door, Sylvia Likens suffered months of torture by her caregiver. The movie is all the more challenging to view, as it closely depicts the actual events. Like Meg's sad end, Sylvia faces the dark side of human nature.
Reflecting the actual death of Sylvia Likens, The Girl Next Door ending essentially blurs the line between real life and through the lens.
In real life, Sylvia suffered months of mistreatment from Gertrude Baniszewski's children and from that of the neighborhood as well as torture at her caretaker's hands. The way Meg Loughlin is portrayed in the movie mirrors this real-life incident well.
The victim's suffering goes unnoticed by authorities and bystanders. Just as Sylvia's abuse was hidden behind closed doors, Meg’s torment in the movie is ignored by those who could have intervened. The abuse escalates to an unbearable level, with both Meg and Sylvia enduring dehumanizing torture.
At the end of the film, like Sylvia, Meg dies from her injuries following months of abuse; in both tales, the sad ending results from a society that neglected them.
The movie is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
