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![Adventures in Babysitting [VHS]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21Z34CSTKZL._SL160_.jpg)
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Way before she grabbed an Oscar nomination for her searing performance as a world-weary prostitute in Leaving Las Vegas, Elisabeth Shue was known as one of the squeaky-clean actresses of the '80s. Having made a splash in The Karate Kid and the '60s-nostalgia TV series Call to Glory, Shue cemented her good-girl reputation with the charming but badly titled Adventures in Babysitting. Set in the John Hughes-style suburbs of Chicago, the titular adventures follow babysitter Chris (Shue), who agrees to watch the Anderson kids (Keith Coogan and Maia Brewton) when her boyfriend cancels their anniversary date. All is quiet on the home front until Chris is called upon to rescue her best friend (Penelope Ann Miller, also doing good-girl duty) from the seedy downtown bus station. She can't leave the kids, and she can't leave her friend alone in the big bad city, so she packs everyone in the station wagon and heads into Chicago. Screwball craziness begins as they encounter car thieves, knife-wielding gangs, gun-toting truck drivers, and, worst of all, Chris's duplicitous boyfriend. It's hardly mature entertainment, but Shue makes it work; when she wins over the audience at a blues club with her improv singing, you'll be won over, too. In his directorial debut, Chris Columbus (who later went on to helm the sap-fests Mrs. Doubtfire and Home Alone) gently skewers the suburbia white-bread mindset of the main characters, and plays up the comedy over the schmaltz with a subtlety of which he now seems incapable; the near romance between Shue and Coogan is played lightly and adorably. Look for brief appearances by art-house faves Lolita Davidovich as a college party girl and Vincent D'Onofrio as an unlikely savior. --Mark Englehart
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Reviews:
5 Stars for this Great Movie - 1 Star for the Letterbox Format
I bought this DVD in my local department store in May of 2010. It says "Widescreen (1.85:1)" on the back of the package with no indication whatsoever that it is letterboxed. We were so disappointed when we popped this into our hi-def DVD player to watch on our 50" plasma. For so many years we have been watching this movie from a VHS copy we bought on eBay for $20 back when it was out of print. Yes, it is true we don't have to watch these letterboxed movies in postage stamp mode on our big screen by going into the DVD player setup, telling it we have a 4:3 screen and then using the resize button on the TV remote to scale it up to the screen. However, quality is lost. It's not a whole lot better than watching the VHS copy through our upscaling JVC VHS player. I suppose it will only be a short time now before Buena Vista releases a "Collector's" or "Special" edition DVD of this movie with a real widescreen version -- what we thought we were buying this go-around. Selling a letterboxed movie in a package that doesn't say so is unforgiveable. Fortunately for Amazon shoppers, the on-line product description now states "letterboxed". This is a great movie and I heartily recommend it. If letterboxing doesn't bother you then by all means get it. If it does bother you, then rent and wait for the real thing. This review is for the Buena Vista 2000 release ISBN 0-7888-1688-8. Dont mess with the babysitter!!
This movie is so great!! Its too funny...and great for the whole family! You will laugh, and this movie will take many turns, you will never expect!! An 80's classic! Editorial reviewer Mark Englehart needs vocabulary enema
Read the amazon buyers reviews for good details about this movie , not the
purging s of Mr Englehart who is taking way too long to say so little about the "Movie" itself. Adventures in babysitting
We watched this as soon as it arrived, in excellent condition. Many people have borrowed it and more want too. This is a fun movie. It came just as it was decribed. Thanks! Excellent comedy for the whole family
This is a great comedy. It is about the hardships (adventures) a teenaged girl encounters when she drives with the three minors she's babysitting to downtown Chicago to pick up her best friend at the train station. The fast paced adventures or situations they run into keep the plot alive at all times. Really funny.
On the technical side, the DVD is a disaster. Although it is advertized with an aspect ratio of 1.85 it will not trigger (flag) modern TVs into the appropiate aspect ratio. I had to struggle with my 2009 50" plasma Samsung to get a semi-decent viewing aspect ratio. Circles appeared as ovals. Inspecting the DVD control files I found that the material is identified as 4:3. Also, resolution is below par.
It's a pity that such a good comedy wasn't treated better by the studio.
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Keyword: Video,
Description: Adventures in Babysitting [VHS]
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