Wanted: Babysitter

This is a great little thriller with some fine performances but I understand Leonard Maltin dumped on it upon its release and it seems to me a lot of folks have followed his lead. There is nothing wrong with this film at all. Granted it is confusing at the start (intentionally) but most exhilarating when we catch up with the events and discover just what a tangled plot we have here. I guess some are surprised and disappointed that the super Maria Schneider keeps her clothes on in this but we catch a glimpse of the equally beautiful Sydne Rome, so all is not lost. John Whittington is especially effective as the little boy and can only imagine how terrible this might have been had this been an American picture. No sentimentality then and possibly another cause for upset in that the interaction between he and Schneider is so adult. Robert Vaughn also appears and is very effective in aggressive mode. Compelling, amusing and thrilling. Sadly, Rene Clement's last film and perhaps we can thank Mr. Maltin for that.

I was not disappointed by this last René Clément's film. It's an international cast, as he did for LA COURSE DU LIEVRE A TRAVERS LES CHAMPS, a couple of years earlier. Not a bad movie which the topic reminded me Yves Boisset's FOLLE A TUER. The nanny and the wealthy kid about to be abducted. Not a masterpiece but certainly not a garbage movie. You would not find such features now. Yes, it's a typical downbeat scheme, as we often saw forty years ago, especially from France. And not only. Good performances too, despite the fact that there was no great actors in the cast. It's also a rather rare film, hard to find and no often released even on French channels.

I love watching such movies from time to time, gloomy and so sad.

A young woman (Maria Schneider)is lured to a babysitting gig in a remote mansion by her treacherous roommate (Sydney Rome). When her young charge wakes up though, she realizes that he's been kidnapped and that she's being used as an unwitting front in the kidnapping. This movie was directed by a respected French director, Rene Clement, and is in black and white for some reason. It is a rather ridiculous melodrama, however, that doesn't really live up to its arty pretensions. On the other hand, people drawn in by its exploitative English title, "Wanted: Babysitter" ( I only understand the "jeun fille" part of the French title, but it seems pretty exploitative too) were probably pretty disappointed at its relative lack of exploitative elements. It was probably mistaken by many for one of the "sexy babysitter" movies of the era (i.e. "The Babysitter", "Weekend with the Babysitter", "Jailbait Babysitter", ad infinitum), especially with the Maria "Last Tango in Paris' Schneider in the lead.

I actually kind of like movies like this though that fall in the no-man's land between art and exploitation. The absurd plot kind of reminded me of an Italian giallo (although it's slow and subtle in a French way rather than delirious and over-the-top in an Italian). Regrettably--nay, tragically--Schneider has no nude scenes, but she's still pretty good. This is actually the third best movie I've seen her in after "Last Tango" and "The Passenger" (. . .well, actually I've only seen her in those two other movies). Rome does have nude scenes, and, surprisingly, she too is pretty good (I found her sexy but incredibly annoying in Polanski's "What?" and just plain irritating in the Italian anthology "Sex with a Smile").

This is a pretty unusual movie which I wouldn't recommend to everybody, but if it sounds interesting to you . . .

"A young woman unwittingly becomes part of a kidnapping plot involving the son of a movie producer she is babysitting. The kidnappers happen to be former business partners of the son's father and are looking to exact some revenge on him. Our babysitter must bide her time and wait to see what will become of the son and herself, while the kidnappers begin to argue amongst themselves, placing the kidnap victims in great peril," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.

That acclaimed director René Clément could be responsible for this haphazard crime thriller is the real shocker. Despite beginning with the appearance of having been edited in a washing machine, the film develops a linear storyline. Once you've figured out what is going on, the engaging Maria Schneider (as Michelle) and endearing John Whittington (as Boots) can get you through the film. There are a couple of female nude scenes, which fit into the storyline well.

**** Scar Tissue (10/15/75) René Clément ~ Maria Schneider, John Whittington, Vic Morrow

The movie has been released on treeline films ( www.treelinefilms.com ) and I bought it at the store for .99 and worth every penny! They also had many other films including Mr. Wong Detective starring Boris Karloff. More on that in another review. The film is in colour and the soundtrack is a little catchy. Its in English but the voice seem to be out of sync. I am a fame of Robert Vaughn and wanted to see what he was up to. Well for most of the movie he is not present. The ending was a little surprising. Seriously I just bought it to kill time while I programming and found myself watching it to the end just because it was so bad...you know like a car wreck...