(Image from Movieweb.com)
IMDB Plot Summery
A comedy about a college student on suspension who is coaxed into babysitting the kids next door, though he is fully unprepared for the wild night ahead of him.
Expectations…
I wasn’t at all expecting anything substantial from The Sitter. I walked into the theater expecting a thin storyline featuring one ridiculous scenario after another, and I was fine with that. That’s what these movies are and any flaws in story and structure can be completely overlooked as long as the movie is genuinely funny. That’s what I was expecting; a funny movie that didn’t take itself seriously… I was exactly half right.
Entertainment…
Again, everything about this movie is completely dependent on its level of humor, especially its entertainment value. I can’t imagine any other reason why anyone would go to see a Jonah Hill movie other than to sit back and crack-up to his now famous brand of foul-mouthed, edgy humor. Unfortunately this film has very little of that, and the amount that is featured just isn’t up to what we know to be Jonah Hill’s level. Talk show interviews he’s done to promote The Sitter were literally much more funny than the film itself.
Overall…
As I mentioned, flaws in the technique or “rules” of film making can be easily overlooked in comedy films as long as we as the audience are just way too busy laughing to even notice them. When you’re not distracted by the comedy however, flaws are very, very noticeable. In The Sitter, it’s hard to feel sympathy or attachment for any of the main characters because none of them are very likable. The plot is very thin and filled with unbelievable (even by far-out-comedy standards) situations that are not just unrealistic, but most importantly, they just aren’t funny. As has been the case with many recent comedies, I just don’t understand who the intended audience is. A lot of the “humor” in the film is silly “Home Alone” type gags, but with it’s “R” rating, The Sitter is obviously not a family movie, and I don’t think the “edgy-adult-humor” featured in the film is at a level that will hold the attention of a teenage/young-adult audience. Overall… The Sitter is just not funny.
The Good…
It’s an alternative to the only other film with a wide release this weekend; New Year’s Eve.
The Not So Good…
Not as funny as you would expect from a Jonah Hill film.
BorderPerspective.com
