OllieSuave-007
This is a TV thriller where Liz Benedict (Patty Duke) hires 18 year-old Joanna Redwine (Stephanie Zimbalist) as her housekeeper and be a live-in companion to her daughter, Tara (Quinn Cummings). But, Joanna gradually manipulates everyone and attempts to break up the family. The plot has some suspenseful moments, including the parts where a doctor tries to dig up dirt on Joanna's past, but much of the movie is mired by bad acting, slow pacing, and lack of attention grabbing scenes. Patty Duke's character was extremely hopeless and annoying and William Shatner seemed disinterested in his role throughout the entire movie. Stephanie Zimbalist looks dazed throughout the story, while the most serviceable acting goes to Quinn Cummings. There's really nothing thrilling about this TV flick. OK to pass on it. Grade D
cin_kong
Having a familiar cast like this makes the performances seem more honest. You won't be disappointed by the acting.I was not a big fan of thrillers genres, however I did want to see Stephanie Zimbalist's early work. Even though you know she was up to no good, we the audience don't find out until the end, why Joanna manipulated people. The final scenes where she completely broke down was well acted and made it easy to feel sympathy for her character.
MovieAddict2016
First things first: There's no baby in this movie, and it's not about a babysitter. So why did they call it "The Babysitter"? I don't know. Because of the drugs the cast and crew were taking, maybe? (I suspect acid, but maybe downers, just to ease the pain of knowing they were starring in such an awful movie.) It's about a family torn apart by a ruthless housesitter with a secretive past. Yes, a HOUSEsitter. Not a BABYsitter. Unless a balding, wig-wearing Will "I Used to Be Famous, Look at Me Now" Shatner counts as a big blubbering baby. He certainly acts like one in this movie. So either it's a smart satire with a self-referential title... or the writer just forgot that it's not about any babies. Or babysitters. (I just can't stress this fact enough!) The housesitter is a sexy 18-year-old seductress, a bit like Drew Barrymore in "Poison Ivy," only not quite as demented. She tries to seduce William Shatner, and he refuses her advances after she pokes fun at him a little bit. Aww, poor baby! (FYI, I wouldn't have cared if she called me scum of the earth!) The Hungarian director Peter Medak has a resume filled with TV movies and television shows. After seeing this it's not surprising he hasn't been able to graduate to the big screen successfully yet.The characters are lame and underdeveloped, the plot is all over the place; scenes lack cohesion and seem to jump back and forth with no real point. I.e. we'll be watching William Shatner talking to some guy and suddenly - whoa! We're in a house! And then we're back to William Shatner! And now we're staring at a cow in a green pasture! (Oh wait, it's just William Shatner.) Don't bother with this. It isn't worth the time.
cwillis_m
This movie was pretty descent. A few times I wasn't sure where it was going, but it always seemed to keep me interested. It kept pulling me back in. I guess that is a way I could put it. I really like how the movie was photographed. It added to the overall mood of it.
AD
