The Babysitters (2007)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

David Ross

Writer (WGA):

David Ross (written by)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

These girls mean business.

Plot:

A teenager turns her babysitting service into a call-girl service for married guys after fooling around with one of her customers.

Plot Keywords:

Call Girl | Babysitter | Flashback | High School Junior | Mountain Cabin

Cast

Lauren Birkell	...	Melissa Rowan
Paul Borghese	...	Cook
Chira Cassel	...	Health Teacher
Anthony Cirillo	...	Adam Beltran
Spencer Treat Clark	...	Scott Miral
Andy Comeau	...	Jerry Tuchman
Alexandra Daddario	...	Barbara Yates
Ann Dowd	...	Tammy Lyner
Jason Dubin	...	George
Harold Fort	...	Doug
Alexie Gilmore	...	Jill
Halley Wegryn Gross	...	Nadine Woodberg
Michael Knowles	...	Guidance Counselor
Louisa Krause	...	Brenda Woodberg
Adam LeFevre	...	Mr. Brown

MPAA:

Rated R for disturbing strong sexual content, language and some drug use - involving teens.

Runtime:

88 min | Canada:90 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:18A | USA:R | Australia:MA (2008) | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:R18

Filming Locations:

Clinton Diner, Maspeth, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Forensic Films

Trivia:

Howard Stern was offered the chance to be a producer on the film but he turned it down.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Shirley Lyner: Shirley Lyner. I'm a junior at Alfred E. Groves high school. This is my babysitting service. The answer is no: mom doesn't drink, dad didn't hit me, Uncle Steve never showed me his privates. I don't even have an Uncle Steve. The money is nice, and paid fellatio isn't that much more humiliating than flipping burgers. But that's not why I do it.

Soundtrack:

Red Tandy

Great little indy film

This is what I look for in independent film. Well drawn characters, competent movie making, and a pleasing ambiguity that a big studio wouldn't dare leave in, lest the audience actually decide how to feel for themselves. The guys are great - desperate, sleazy, charming, funny and sad. The girls are also portrayed fairly - scheming, sweet, sexy and innocent. Leguizamo's character is believable to me as an aging playa, chafing against middle age and lusting for Waterson's Shirley. And Shirley is the best on-screen pimp in recent memory. To be fair: things unfold a little quickly, people accept their situations a little easier than they might in real life, but this is a pretty short movie, and throwing in more angst would be overkill and overlong on screen. No one comes away clean, and no one comes away as the absolute bad guy. Moral absolutes would kill this film, and I'm glad it got made the way it did.