There are some movies that we should never remake. However, make no mistake, Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead is not one of them. We should celebrate when bad movies are remade. Yet, while most people look back at the Christina Applegate 1991 modern (imagine me using air quotes) classic, you shouldn’t. It’s unfunny and hardly worth your time.
It’s a perfect example of why the audience dictates classics. For some reason, like the ridiculous remake of Road House, people fondly look back at films they grew up with. The remake of Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead misses the mark like the original by not embracing the dark comedy possibilities and trading away any originality for a family comedy premise that doesn’t work.
And that’s too bad because Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead has a likable cast and has positive messaging.
Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead’s Synopsis and Review
The story follows Tanya Crandell (Bel-Air’s Simone Joy Jones), who is about to embark on a trip of a lifetime. Tanya is set to spend a summer in Spain with friends before attending Howard University in the fall. However, that changes when Tanya’s mother (Patricia “Ms. Pat” Williams) has a nervous breakdown. She is ordered to attend a wellness retreat in Thailand for burnout.
Tanya’s plans are now canceled, and she must stay home to help out the babysitter (June Squibb), who will watch over them. That’s when the old bird dies, and Tanya finds her corpse the color of a gigantic Smurf. Tanya and her three siblings then panic, putting the babysitter in the trunk of her car and letting her roll into a lake. Yeah, these kids watch too much Dateline.
Except the money their mother left for them was in the babysitter’s purse, which was in the backseat of the compact vehicle. This forces Tanya to find a job, where she meets a cute guy (Bottoms’s Miles Fowler) while driving a rideshare. Also, she somehow lands an executive assistant gig working for Rose (a lifeless Nicole Richie), who runs one of her favorite fashion lines.
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Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead is a forgettable remake
The remake of Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead is forgettable, mainly regarding the crux of its premise and story. The big difference in the premise in the original was that the kids dropped the corpse at the morgue’s door with a note. Director Wade Allain-Marcus chalks it up to a societal issue, which is understandable when you look at it through a teenager’s lens.
This is surprising, considering the script from Chuck Hayward, who has written for Ted Lasso, WandaVision, and Life & Beth. His script has some nice things going for it, like valuable lessons. For example, Tanya and her brother (Donielle T. Hansley Jr.) talk about how hard it is to run a home and work full-time. Also, the chemistry between Wise and Jones is adorable, and the film has its best moments.
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Is Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead Worth Watching?
Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead is not worth watching because the young love is abandoned in the third act. Also, the film becomes way too Nicole Richie-centric, who is too lightweight an actress to carry a significant supporting role. The film then delves into familiar territory, dealing with Tanya’s secret and a crack in her current social life. Jermaine Fowler is also criminally underused as well.
To make matters worse, even though they settle into a family comedy, the big moment the film should be working its way up to, like their mother’s return, is fumbled away. This means that Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead is a perfect example of how you can’t be a dark comedy or a family one; you have to choose a side.
Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead cannot handle either.
What did you think of the film Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter is Dead? Let us know in the comments below!
You can watch Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter is Dead in theaters this Friday and will stream on BET+ on May 16th, 2024!
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4/10
