Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991)

Don't Tell Mom The Babysitter's Dead aspires to be a cross between Home Alone and Risky Business, with Christina Applegate as an inadvertent scam artist who gets in over her head and somehow pulls it off. When her mother goes to Australia for two months, Sue Ellen (Applegate) thinks she's going to be in charge--until an elderly tyrant of a babysitter arrives. But on the very first night the old lady has a heart attack and keels over. Sue Ellen and her siblings leave the body at a mortuary, only to discover afterward that all the money their mother had left for the summer was in the babysitter's clothes. So Sue Ellen has to get a job. Thanks to a trumped-up resume, she ends up as an executive assistant at a clothing manufacturer. For a while she keeps her head above water by skillfully exploiting a friendly coworker, but her brothers and sisters are running amok at home and a venomous receptionist has it in for her at work. The role-reversal humor of Sue Ellen having to mother her siblings is unsurprising, but Applegate is unexpectedly appealing; her scenes with Josh Charles (Dead Poet's Society, Threesome) have a sweet chemistry. Joanna Cassidy (Blade Runner, The Laughing Policeman) plays Sue Ellen's boss and a young David Duchovny (The X-Files, The Rapture) is a weaselly clerk. --Bret Fetzer Amazon.com

Too bad they spoiled it

I wish that they could've made this movie with less strong cuss words. It would otherwise be a good, funny, family movie. However, the stoner kids "f" words are too much. I wish I could show it because the underlying message is good & the kids pull it together in the end. I think that they were going for the teen sales and wanted to make it "cool". May 4, 2008

Don't Tell Mom The Babysitters Dead

This is a movie that came out a few years ago but is still a favorite of mine. It is a family classic and is enjoyable for all ages. April 25, 2008

This movie is great!

I first saw this when I was a kid when HBO was playing constantly. I loved it then, and I'm surprised at how much I still enjoy it. Simply told, a poorly treated mother gets to escape for a summer with her boyfriend. She deems her daughter too immature and selfish to run the house, so she hires a baby sitter. Good call, except the old lady dies the first night. The story stays good, and the acting is decent for the kid and adult actors. Give it a try! April 14, 2008

Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead

Christina Applegate is surprisingly good in this cult classic playing Sue Ellen. After the babysitter dies from old age, she finds herself responsible for her four younger brothers and sisters for the entire summer. As much as she hates it, Sue Ellen has to get a job to support them all. When she applies for a receptionist job with a clothing manufacturer, her fabricated resume lands her a job with the chief executive. This is a lighthearted movie with many funny scenes.
March 30, 2008

Saw this movie for the first time

I had seen this movie on the shelves for years and always said, "oh I need to rent that" and just never did. So, I bought it off Amazon since it would be cheaper than me renting anything, since I always end up with late fees. Anyway, I really enjoyed it. It's just a fun light hearted movie that has a good message. I definantly recommend watching the movie. March 28, 2008

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