The Babysitter

In its own way, The Babysitter is an entertaining bit of silliness that reflects on the present day in a sometimes hilarious way (the most tragic thing about dying is losing followers on Instagram!) and you can’t deny its inventiveness. But it's not scary enough for a horror film and not funny enough for a comedy, i.e. it's a kind of weird farce with a few passable gore moments. Samara Weaving is, of course, a hottie and she clearly pulls it off here. Because the rest of the ensemble are incredibly wooden. The dynamic direction is fine, but it perhaps stands out a little too ostentatiously above everything else in this film (except for Samara Weaving's acting). (09/25/2020)

Another variation on Home Alone like the recent Better Watch Out, and it succeeded just as well. Better Watch Out focused more on story and twists, whereas The Babysitter focuses mainly on gore and humour, so both score points with me, although seeing them all together in one film would have been even more of a kick. The film is nicely shot, very sexy, decently suspenseful and above all very gory, the deaths are impressive and will please the eye of many a horror fan. Definitely one of the best horror comedies this year. 75% (10/14/2017)

The Babysitter combines elements of horror and black comedy and if you don't take McG's film too seriously, you can enjoy it quite a bit. The film has an ideally short running time, more than a few WTF moments and in more than one scene is reminiscent of Home Alone (with an R-rating). Some of the moments, whether bloody or humorous, were effective, some less so (as was evident in the movie references, for example), but on the whole it was a likeable romp for just one viewing. (09/12/2023)

I think this film can be perfectly summed up by the word crap. Why the distributor listed it as a horror film is simply beyond me. Is it because of that terrible book? Or because of Samara Weaving's smile, which would scare off even a fully-grown shark? For a cheap laugh, it came in handy on a gloomy afternoon. Its runtime was by no means exaggerated, and those whose lives matter were given roles which might warrant a few lawsuits, because stereotypes. 3*- (11/25/2020)

Hugo Weaving's niece in a swimsuit, with a kitchen knife or a shotgun, take your pick. A horror take on Home Alone with a dash of Satanism. The opening with the nanny that every boy (and not just boys) dreams of having sets the right tone and then spills over into the bloody destruction of the beautiful blonde's evil plans. It's often overwrought and McG seems to have ditched consistency and drama, but I enjoyed it unexpectedly a lot. (01/03/2023)