So much average

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

As Good As It Gets

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

RELEASED IN 1987 and directed by Chris Columbus, "Adventures in Babysitting" (aka "A Night on the Town") is a teen dramedy about 17 year-old babysitter, Chris (Elisabeth Shue), from the suburbs of Chicago who has no choice but to take the siblings she's babysitting (Keith Coogan & Maia Brewton) and their friend (Anthony Rapp) into the big city whereupon they have many misadventures. Penelope Ann Miller plays Chris' geeky friend (at the bus station), Calvin Levels a car thief, John Davis Chandler the main heavy and George Newbern a helpful college dude with eyes for Chris. I was surprised at how entertaining this movie is. It has the tone of an Indiana Jones flick, but with teen protagonists and taking place in a modern USA city. The Thor element was a unique surprise and the little girl is cute and spry. The protagonists are likable and you can sense the warmth in their relationships, e.g. Brad's infatuation with Chris. Unfortunately, the movie fumbles the ball on the female front a little bit. There are quality women in the cast, for sure, but the director never milks these resources for their worth (and I'm not tawkin' bout nudity or sleaze). Take Shue, for example (who was 21 during filming); she's dressed in a looong sweater or jacket that covers her figure the entire film. Compare this with her role in "The Karate Kid" (1984) where her beauty is well displayed and tastefully so. THE FILM RUNS 1 hour & 42 minutes and was shot in Toronto and the Chicago area. WRITER: David Simkins GRADE: B+/A-

(Flash Review)Only the 80's could bunch this many randomly associated scenes together to make an amusing cohesive movie. Shue plays a high school babysitter who sets out for a night of sitting for a little girl and an horny pre- teen boy that has the hots for her. Many awkward moments there. Shue's idiot friend has a major emergency and needs her help in the big city. Shue takes the kids on a trip to help her friend. Overblown 80's-style scenarios happen; many of which are only amusing in the 80's context thus are still charming and amusing. Will she be able to help her friend and get the kids back without raising suspicion? There are many memorable and tense scenes as well as a romantic plot point with a preppy upper class chap.

The 80s might be my favorite era of movies, which I realize to many movie enthusiasts, is probably a sin. I will admit that I haven't seen a lot of "classic" movies made in the 60s downward but I still try to catch up on them all the time, so I suppose this opinion is subject to change but regardless, many of my favorite movies were made in the 80s. But Adventures in Babysitting is one of those films with just a certain 80s charm that can't be entirely replicated nowadays. Is it that ambitious? No, not really. Is it very entertaining? Absolutely. It has some strange quirks and weird things that are mostly found in 80s movies because the 80s was kinda quirky and weird. (Well at least as far as I can tell without growing up in the era). The story itself is a very basic fish out of water story with a bunch of white kids in the suburbs getting thrown into crazy events in the city of Chicago that are obviously outrageous and over the top because it's a movie. Right from the opening scene of Chris Parker (Elisabeth Shue) dancing like a fool in her bedroom alone, you kinda realize this movie is going to have at least some certain charm to it. Chris is stood up by her boyfriend and then ends up having to babysit for the Andersons' children: Sara (Maia Brewton) and Brad (Keith Coogan). But a third guest comes along Darly Coopersmith (Anthony Rapp) after he finds out that Chris is taking all of them into the city when she gets a call from her friend Brenda (Penelope Ann Miller) who decided to run away from home like an idiot. Brenda is essentially the B-plot of the film and they cut to her character here and there for some easy laughs but it's enjoyable nonetheless. Everything essentially turns horrible once the tire on Chris' car goes flat and they then get picked up by a trucker with a hook for a hand, they get involved with a car thief, they go to a Blues club (which might be my favorite scene in the film), college parties, etc. Just about everything that could go wrong, goes wrong. The movie is simply a fun comedy with an interesting enough plot to go with it and a certain 80s charm that can't really be replicated nowadays. Besides, who wouldn't rather go see Transformers: Age of Extinction and have their brain turn to mashed potatoes instead of watching an actual fun film made in the world of Hollywood like Adventures of Babysitting? Sigh. Overall, it's a fun movie; a harmlessly fun movie with some nice quirks to it and maybe some harmless fun would be okay in Hollywood today more often (And does certainly still exist along with actual intelligent movies like the recently released Dawn of the Planet of the Apes…how did I manage to mention Transformers and Planet of the Apes in a review for Adventures in Babysitting?)

There are certain films that I never tire of and this is one of them. It goes without saying that this film has everything you could possibly want in a film and more. It has a flawless cast headed by Elisabeth Shue (Chris), Maia Brewton (Sara), Keith Coogan (Brad), and Vincent D'Onofrio (Dawson). Spoilers ahead: Here is a little bit of how the film starts out. Chris who is babysitting Sara and Brad (His Friend Daryl (Anthony Rapp) also stayed over), and they had to make a trip into Chicago to pick her friend Brenda (Penelope Ann Miller), who ran away from home, and they essentially go through hell trying to pick up Brenda and get back home. Some of the things they went through included being chased down by the mob (Daryl stole a copy of Playboy that has betting information, because he saw the centerfold is a dead ringer for Chris), and ending up in in an all-black blues bar, with the rule being "Nobody gets out of here without singing the blues.", so they have to singing "Babysitting Blues", which not only the owner but all the customers get into. Finding out that the guy she was seeing, is actually a creep who instead of being sick (As he claimed), was taking another woman out to dinner. She thought it was beneath her to strike back, but Daryl did not. He kicked him in the ass, and his face fell straight into a cake. Having their car break down and have to be towed to Dawson's Garage, without enough money to get the repairs, and without the money can't get home). This is a great scene, because Sara thinks he is Thor (He looks like him), and is able to melt his heart, and he gives them a break on the price. There are about 4 or 5 other incredible scenes that I love in this movie, and there is not one wasted moment from start to finish. It goes without saying I love this movie and although I have seen thousands of films, it cracks my Top 10. Saying I give it 10/10 is redundant.