Spotlight

Spotlight Date: 21-January-07
Spoiler Rating: Medium

Adventures in Babysitting (1987)

Two weeks ago I wrote about '80s movies' penchant for rich white kids who get into cool trouble (Spotlight on "Gotcha!"), and now I offer up another example, "Adventures in Babysitting." This charming picture flavors the suburban teen theme with the metropolitan angst found in Martin Scorsese's dark comedy "After Hours" (1985). It addresses first love, growing up, and the power of innocence, but mostly it's a fantasy of fun.

The action unfolds during a single night which starts badly for the heroine, Chris Parker (Elisabeth Shue). Her boyfriend cancels their big date at the last minute, leaving her mournfully free to sit in front of the television with a spunky little charge named Sara (Maia Brewton). But the girls' night in barely gets off the ground. First, Sara's older brother Brad (Keith Coogan) decides to stick around because he has a crush on Chris; then his obnoxious pal Daryl (Anthony Rapp) decides to join him; then Chris' best friend (Penelope Ann Miller) calls in a panic from the Chicago bus station begging for a ride home. Forced to leave her cushy neighborhood with kids in tow, Chris heads to the city for a quick round-trip that erupts into a late-night odyssey.

As the pampered posse progresses from one screwball peril to another, meeting a host of colorful characters on the way, each member comes to show his or her true colors. They're all winning. Shue nails the awkwardness of an inexperienced young woman trying to be an adult and manages a potentially embarrassing bar scene with ease. Sara transcends moppet status through her idolization of the superhero Thor, who makes a cameo appearance in the shape of Vincent D'Onofrio. Brad is irresistibly sweet and chivalrous, looking out for his sister and defending his lady love from gangs in the subway. Even Daryl makes up for his foolish theft of a hoodlum's Playboy by helping Chris avenge herself during a chance run-in with her boyfriend. She does deserve better, it's true, although I'd root for the goodhearted car thief who pinches their ride (Calvin Levels) over the drippy frat boy who gives them a ride in a pinch (George Newbern). So much for taste.

When the craziness is over — no harm done and nothing detected, of course — everyone agrees it was the best night of their lives. They're probably right to think so as they head off into their white bread futures clinging to the afterglow of risky business. Disney is reportedly planning a remake of "Adventures in Babysitting," and one has to wonder how the story will play without the cultural naiveté at the heart of the original.

Copyright © 2007 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.