Babysitter Wanted (2008)

In a small college town, a young girl working on a babysitting job in a rural farm is terrorized throughout the night.

Directors:

Jonas Barnes, Michael Manasseri

Writer:

Jonas Barnes

Stars:

Tina Houtz, Sarah Thompson, Nana Visitor

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tina Houtz	...	Rebecca Miller
Sarah Thompson	...	Angie Albright
Nana Visitor	...	Linda Albright
Jillian Schmitz	...	Erica
Matt Dallas	...	Rick
Linda Neal	...	Rebecca's Mother
Monty Bane	...	Father Nicoletta
Douglas Rowe	...	Professor
Bruce Thomas	...	Jim Stanton
Kristen Dalton	...	Violet Stanton
Kai Caster	...	Sam Stanton
Brett Claywell	...	Hal
Bill Moseley	...	Chief Dinneli
Jeff Markey	...	Deputy Connor
Cristie Schoen Codd	...	Dazed Girl (as Cristie Schoen)

Storyline

The religious teenager Angie Albright moves to a small town to study Art History in college. She finds a weird roommate and befriends the student and former altar boy Rick. Angie decides to babysit to raise money to buy a bed and she finds an advertisement to work at the distant Stanton Farm in the countryside. She is welcomed by Jim Stanton and his wife Violet that are seeking a babysitter for their son Sam and they make arrangements for Friday night. Meanwhile Angie has the sensation that someone is stalking her and she goes to the police station and reports to Chief Dinneli. On Friday night, Angie's car breaks and Rick gives a ride to Angie to go to the farm. When she is alone with Sam, a stranger breaks in the farmhouse and Angie saves Sam from the man. Soon she learns that she is in the house of evil and nothing is like she thought it would be.

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Plot Keywords:

roommate | babysitter | son of satan | telephone call | horn | 

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Taglines:

No experience necessary...

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong grisly violence including disturbing images, torture and terror, some language and drug use

Did You Know?

Trivia

Matt Dallas and Bruce Thomas appeared together in the TV series Kyle XY

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Goofs

Even though the movie was set in Northern California, the Area Codes that are listed on the school bulletin board are 310 and 503. Both Area Codes are for Los Angeles and Norther Oregon respectively. Also, they used "real" prefixes rather than the movie version of 555.

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Quotes

Angie Albright: Sam, look. There is plenty of food in here for you. See?
Angie Albright: Sam, you don't have to eat me.

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Connections

Referenced in Babysitter Wanted: Behind the Scenes (2009)

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Soundtracks

Fading in C# Minor
Written by Richard Larsen, Jennifer M. Cook, Eddie Barajas
Performed by UNA

User Reviews

Babysitting is still a dangerous job.

"Try to be a nice guy and that's the thanks I get!"

Babysitter Wanted is quite similar to the movie House of the Devil in many ways (though it preceded it by about a year). Both movies have a similar premise (young woman at a small college taking a rural babysitting-type job at a spooky locale because she's desperate for money), both try to scare you by slowly building tension (at least, initially) in a large, quiet house, and both have similar sources of evil as the heart of the threat to our unsuspecting heroines. 

The main difference between the two movies, though (besides a gruesome twist or two), is that House of the Devil is just better. It's more frightening, more interesting, and more memorable. That's not to say that Babysitter Wanted is bad or not worth watching. It's a sinister movie that's shot well, and I didn't find much reason to complain about the actors (though there is a faintly ridiculous monologue almost an hour into the proceedings that would have been better left out). The story is simple and violence and gore are certainly present (though it happens off-screen as often as on). The last 45 minutes or so are quite different from what comes before, so be prepared for a shift in tone. 

The final act is where the two movies really separate themselves, and that's really where I think House of the Devil completely outshines this. 

Maybe I would have appreciated Babysitter Wanted more if I hadn't seen a superior,similar movie that I couldn't help comparing it to. Give it a try if you'd like; there are far, far worse horror movies available.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 July 2008 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Babysitter Wanted

Filming Locations:

Lake Shastina, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Big Screen Entertainment Group

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1