The Hidden Staircase is one of the most iconic books from the original Nancy Drew series. That says something it is only the second book in the series and what would we come to expect of the famous girl detective hadn’t yet been set in stone. Now like most of the yellow bind books, there are two version. First published in 1930 and then revised in 1959.
Being one of the most iconic books from this series, it is understandable that it would be adapted. There was an adaption in 1939, Her Interactive who makes the Nancy Drew PC games used elements of this book in Secrets of the Old Clock. The Nancy Drew television show that aired on The CW made reference to the staircase from the titular book in the pilot and later episode borrows the title.
Then we have this movie which came out in 2019 and adapted the book. And ooh boy I do not like this movie. It’s so funny, this is probably my fifth or sixth time watching it and every other time, I thought it was fine. It’s an okay adaption of the books I guess. The last few times I watched it though I wasn’t the huge Nancy fan I am today. And that is where my issue comes in. This movie doesn’t seem to understand her character as they made her a rebellious skater chick punk who is on the wrong side of the law. That might seem like an exaggeration but the Nancy in this movie doesn’t feel like Nancy Drew.
Now it is true that the CW series I love has a wildly different take on my favorite detective and makes her more of a social outcast but a few differences between that show and this one. The show isn’t doing adaptions of any of the books but using the characters to tell new stories and Nancy in that show is a young adult who had already been the girl detective. Am I being more forgiving because I am a fan of the show? Yes but even then, even with some of the shenanigans Kennedy McMann’s Nancy gets into on her show, she still feels closer to the Nancy I know and love than the Nancy seen here.
It just feels like even with adapting this for the intended audience of who Nancy is aimed for, they didn’t trust Nancy to be Nancy. Heck, looking at the 2007 movie I love which is not a perfect adaption has a better understanding of Nancy even if it’s more a loving parody a la Brady Bunch Movie or Barbie. It mocks what it loves but it still gets Nancy and treats her with respect understanding the character from the original books is a good kid.
Honestly, it feels like they only did a quick glance at the book. I understand that changes are made when adaption one source material to another but it’s not hard to pick up a copy of this book as you can Nancy Drew books in libraries. I should know.
Okay, so let’s look at the other element here, they updated this movie to modern times. Well great, then they could’ve looked at one of the Nancy Drew Diaries books to see that even in modern stories, Nancy doesn’t stray from being the good person she was when she debuted. What, did these people thinking maker her rebellious was #girlpower.
Yeah Yeah, I know this is getting kinda rambly and I haven’t even gotten to the main villain yet. Well let’s get on with that.
First Appearance
We first meet Nate when he shows up at a booth ran by Hannah, who again in this version is Carson’s sister. It’s clear that in this version, he is an old family friend of the Drews. Even down to being Nancy’s godfather. At first, he seems like a good person but once it is revealed that he had been the one causing the old lady Flora to be scared in her house, we see that he is a bit of a coward and weak.
Personality
Yeah, he really doesn’t have much of a personality. He’s honestly just a stock kids movie villain which is a bit frustrating as I believe that Nancy deserves better than jut a stock kids movie villain. Yes I know, the Nancy Drew books are written for children but hey still respect the audience they are for and I don’t feel this movie does that. It’s not hand holdy with the mystery it it feels dumbed down compared to what I remember of the book’s mystery. I dunno, it just doesn’t scream Nancy Drew. This movie in many ways is les famous girl detective and more Kevin McAllister. Home Alone is fine and yes, the house does have a lot of traps that were used to scare the girls but I don’t come to a Nancy Drew movie for shenanigans.
Motive
He is in massive debt and if he is able to get Flora to sell her home known as Twin Elms as people are trying to get train to come through River Heights and this would get him out of his debt . He lies to Carson and pretends to be on his side as bringing in the train would displace people. If this were a smarter movie, the bringing in of a train to River Heights could serve as commentary on gentrification and how corporations and big businesses tend to run the people out of small towns to made the towns what they are. But it isn’t and the train thing is mostly forgotten until the final reveal of the movie.
Lackey
Whit Warrington
Whit serves as Nate’s muscle d is willing to kill the good guys which is a line that Nate is not willing to cross. Throughout the movie, we see Whit tracking Nancy to keep track of her whereabouts
Most Evil Deed
I’ve got nothing. This guy is such a nothing character and such a nothing villain. TBF I did not read the book again before writing this blog but considering this is an in-name only adaption, I think I’d be more furious if I did re-read the book.
Demise
Yeah, whatever. He’s drugged I think with something he’d been using and grabs a nutcracker from the front porch of the house thinking it’s a gun but as soon he sees it, he thinks the nutcracker has enlarged and is attacking him which leads to him rolling around in the grass of the house’s front yard which is pink. So by the time, he’s arrested, he’s covered in pink.
Is Nate A Good Villain?
Oh wait, that’s a serious question. Yeah No. He’s one of the worst villains I’ve covered when looking at villains an frankly I now despise this adaption of Nancy Drew as it just doesn’t understand who she is or how dangerous the criminals she goes up against are supposed to be. This movie decided to turn a Nancy Drew villain into something more akin to the Wet Bandits and no, just no. This movie infuriates me as it does not understand my favorite detective and the true dangers she faces.
Again, yes Nancy Drew is a series written for children but if we even look at something like the recent Nancy Drew Diaries books which are the books that got me to love her and read the classic books, they have Nancy go against real threats. If you’ve read my past reviews of books from that series, you’ll know that she has faced real threats but here they take a villain from one of her classic books and turn him into a joke. I feel I have a right to be infuriated about that as Nancy is a capable detective who deserves real foes who could give her a challenge, not someone Kevin McAllister could take out with ease.
Join me next time as I close out this event as I look at the reason I decided to look at modern Nancy Drew villains as I look at one of my favorite television villains in recent memory as I look at the villain of the third season of the CW show as I look at
Temperance Hudson
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