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Adventures in Babysitting is probably one of the funniest and most overlooked '80s comedies.
Set in Chicago's suburbs, Chris Columbus' Home Alone precursor documents Chris Parker's (Elisabeth Shue, The Karate Kid) outlandish evening sitting neighbors. The blonde bombshell's date ditched her and she therefore took on this gig spur the moment. But when her best friend desperately calls for help from downtown, Chris carts Sara (Maia Brewton), Brad (Keith Coogan) and Daryl (Anthony Rapp) to the rescue, a decision she'll likely regret and viewers much appreciate.
The happenings continue spiraling downhill and beyond all real life babysitters' wildest dreams. Running away from the bad guys, Chris and company stumble into an all African-American blues club where they must sing before leaving.
"Uh, sir," says a panicked Chris, "We did not mean to interrupt your little concert here. If you'll excuse us, we'll let ourselves off of the stage." Clearly they'll break out into song and dance from there, after which they'll scram. Although somewhat cheesy, the improvised lyrics are kind of endearing and literally describe everything they've endured that night.
"See, me and my boyfriend Mike, tonight's our anniversary. But then he went and cancelled. And now I'm stuck watching these three. And it's so hard...!" exclaims Chris while singing the blues.
The fate of their getting home before their parents rests in the hands of godly mechanic Dawson (Vincent D'Onofrio, The Cell). D'Onofrio looked so different back then, all oiled up and a certified hottie, if you will. Through low camera angles and climactic music, Columbus glorifies this actor more than in other scenes. It's probably the only time in D'Onofrio's career that he actually resembled little helmet-wearing Sara's hero Thor. As you can imagine, the kids make it home in the nick of time. And Chris gets revenge on cheating Mike after locking lips with a college boy.
The movie makes you wish you had an ounce as much fun depicted rather than the usual phone-chatting or reading. What a great family escape for anyone above age ten looking for adventurous storytelling. Plus it's on Netflix. About 15 years ago, I first saw this film with my dad, who created and wrote reviews for filmsondisc.com. We watched Adventures in Babysitting while waiting to board our flight (I forget where we were going). He raved about how funny the movie was, but I do not think the humor resonated until now, having years of babysitting experience under my belt. Get excited for this adorable babysitting ride. - LIZ KOBAK