Gen Xers will remember the psychological trip that was The Hand that Rocks the Cradle. It took me months to get over that thriller but that’s nothing compared to Netflix’s new Nanny drama, Deadly Illusions.

Written and directed by Anna Elizabeth James, Deadly Illusions, stars Kristen Davis as popular mystery writer, Mary Morrison, who has hit a wall in her popular book series. She desperately wants to take a break from writing but her publisher and agent are pushing her to get back at it and pump out another best-seller. She resists, alluding to the stress her writing puts on her little family, but in the end, she concedes after discovering her family’s financial stability is at risk because of a bad investment made by her husband, Tom (Dermot Mulroney).

In an effort to help, Mary’s best friend, Elain (Shanola Hampton) suggests that Mary and Tom hire a nanny to help them manage their home while Mary fulfills her newest contract. After interviewing a number of less than stellar candidates, Mary meets Grace (Greer Grammer).

Grace fits into the rhythm of the family seamlessly and even helps Mary have a break through with her writer’s block. Before long, though, Mary begins having troubling dreams about Grace. The line between dream and reality gets blurred as time goes on and soon Mary doesn’t know what is real and what is fantasy.

Mary is frazzled as she feels her grip on reality slipping so tells Elaine about the dreams and her confusion in hopes that her friend would tell her its all in her head. Elaine offers words of platitude to her friend but could not ignore her own growing suspicion that Grace isn’t exactly as she seems so she confronts Grace privately to get some answers.

At the same time, Mary realizes that the Nanny agency had yet to cash their cheques. When she calls to inquire as to why the payments weren’t processed, the agency informs Mary that she had not yet chosen a nanny. Mary panics, realizing that Grace wasn’t referred to her after all and her resume is entirely a work of fiction. Mary races to Elaine’s house to ask her friend for help – only to find her friend murdered.

Mary’s life goes into a tailspin as she is accused of her best friend’s murder. Her grasp on reality is tenuous, at best, and a psychopathic stranger has infiltrated her family. When Grace begins to unravel in her home, Mary is forced to take matters into her own hands .

Deadly Illusions has all of the ingredients to make it a truly memorable film – a strained marriage, a beautiful interloper and enough psychological manipulation to leave the viewer questioning their grasp on reality. This thriller offers enough mind-bending plot twists to rival some of the most memorable films of the genre, no wonder it has recently found its way to the top of the Netflix charts!

Make no mistake, Netflix’s thriller, Deadly Illusions, will keep you on the edge of your seat until the bitter end.