The Babysitters (2007)

Yup, yesterday was a freebie. No. . . not really. I meant to schedule it but ended up publishing it instead. Figured that was my mistake and deciding to do another posting for today so that I could honor my Tuesday/Friday schedule. Anyways, I freely admit this movie is a little gross. I tend to watch Netflix on my Kindle and when I look at a movie, they automatically suggest four others. You can go down this rabbit hole of seeing other recommendations for awhile. I think I choose this one a little haphazardly. But I finish what I start, so here is The Babysitters, according to IMDb:

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

Oh, there will be a spoiler alert. You might not need it. The movie is less than 90 minutes long and could be used to kill time, however, it's also a little creepy and not something everyone would necessarily want to watch. 

Plot

The movie starts with, Shirley in jeans, a see-through white tee with no bra walking through a house full of older men and teenage girls snuggled up together. She narrates that giving fellatio for money is no more demeaning than flipping burgers. She then cuts to the beginning of the story.

Shirley (Katherine Waterston) is a high school student being told to think about the SATs  and college. At home, her parents seem simple but look out for her. She's a bit mousy, with thick pull-over sweaters and plain brown hair parted in the middle. Scheduled to babysit, but not having a car, Michael (John Leguizamo), the dad, comes to pick her up.

On the way back to drop her off he gets her a burger at a diner because her stomach is growling. Not yet wanting to go home, he takes her to this place with abandoned trains. They then proceed to make out. Initially, we never see more than that but it's implied, as the movie cuts to them back in the car. He looks worried, but she looks stoic. After dropping her at home and asking her not to say anything, he hands her a wad of money  totaling $200.

Shirley in a sex-ed class and Michael sitting in a marketing meeting. Other scenes  flash by, depicting  the two living their lives as normal. End of the day, Michael is at the same diner with his kids and Shirley is sitting outside with friends. All of a sudden Michael's wife, Gail (Cynthia Nixon), comes over and asks her to babysit again. This begins their ongoing play-for-pay relationship. 

Shirley's friend, Melissa (Lauren Birkell), coaxes the information out of her about her babysitting job and Michael confides in his friend, Jerry (Andy Corneau). Next thing you know people are getting set up. Shirley asking for 20%, just to keep it far, since she's booking all the gigs. Things keep evolving and Shirley gets business cards made.

After awhile, things start to go wrong. Michael is getting jealous of Shirley seeing other guys, and a girl, Nadine (Halley Wegryn Gross), gets involved. Nadine is Brenda's (Louisa Krause) step sister. She doesn't want to give a cut of her money to Shirley so starts using her own girls. Shirley and Melissa see this as encroaching on their territory and can't stand for it. The two take Michael and proceed to trash the school to make a point. It works though. It gets everyone in line.

After that, all the guys (eight) and girls (six) go on a "retreat". Jerry has a cabin in the woods, and for two days they all take turns having sex and take ecstasy to keep things going. But when everyone comes back, Brenda is different. She wants out, and bails on a babysitting job, calling her step brother to come pick her up. This sparks Nadine to start cancelling appointments out of spite as well.

Thoughts

I think if a movie is going to have a controversial theme then it should be interesting and compelling. I don't know if this is. Maybe. . . kind of. I've seen enough porn and the babysitter theme is prominent. This is the movie version of the surrounding events. The beginning of the movie is uncomfortable. Especially for someone who's not sure what they are getting into watching this.The middle has you kind of wrapped up in the glory of Shirley's business venture and eventually, the sharks involved. The end gets you back to uncomfortable and tense place. 

I wouldn't say this is a bad movie by any means. The men in the movie do an okay job acting (John Leguizamo hits and misses in places). Some of the guys in the periphery of the movie really stand out though. It's all about the girls though. They each have their own personality and are doing it for their own reasons. The actresses who play Brenda, Melissa, and Nadine all bring something interesting to an otherwise sleazy film. 

Some movies are good, but not something you watch twice. Requiem for a Dream, Trainspotting, and now The Babysitters are on that list for me.

After I finished writing this, I realized there as was still something bothering me. A flaw in this movie, I can't really justify or see past. All these guys have a lot on the line; family, jobs, children, and wives. Not mention, all the girls are minors and this is illegal. The girls are enterprising, but not self-reliant. These guys are putting everything on the line by being with these girls and doing things beyond a quick in the car. One scene in particular. I won't spoil it, but I will say it involves masks. I more than understand sex is a powerful desire, but these guys are acting stupidly. At $200-300 a session, they all have money, thus you would think they would be smart enough not to ruin the lives they've built.

Spoiler Alert

Upset at work and at home Michael calls up Shirley, taking her to the train depot again. He asks her to only be with him, but she refuses, getting angry at him for making their arransentimental. When a cop sees him at the abandoned train depot he leaves her there. Pissed, she walks to a pay phone trying to get in touch with Nadine or Brenda, their (step) brother denies her access saying Brenda's busy and Nadine's babysitting. That's the line. With her suspicions confirmed, Shirley calls Melissa, who's with Jerry, and they get Jerry to pick her up and go to the spot Nadine usually works.

Jerry busts into the guys truck and Melissa and Shirley yank Nadine out and hold her over a bridge. A moment happens, with the two, being so ruthless, they almost drop her, but Jerry pulls her back over. When the scare is over, Shirley looks over to realize the guy who was in the truck with Nadine is her dad.