Summary
It makes a concept that was already silly (but fresh) feel sillier (and stupid).
This review of Netflix’s The Babysitter: Killer Queen contains no spoilers — the comedy horror film will be released on the platform on September 10, 2020.
Read the review of the first film in the series.
When I saw the press release of The Babysitter: Killer Queen I thought surely not? Admittedly, I enjoyed The Babysitter — it is a hella fun comedy horror that relies on being outrageous and shocking at the same time. But I never thought at the end of that film that a continuation was necessary — a continuation to what exactly? Clearly, I’ve been proven wrong and here we are — a sequel.
The sequel presents an older teenage version of Cole (Judah Lewis). One that is suitably traumatized by the events of the last film. A character that wears full suits to schools and wonders why everyone looks at him strangely. His crush Melanie (Emily Alyn Lind) has a jock boyfriend that is boisterous and annoying. His parents are coddling him, believing that he’s mentally unstable after the events of the last film. There’s also a new girl introduced to the story — Phoebe, played by the ever-popular Jenna Ortega who made convincing performances in You. She’s purposefully elusive.
It’s difficult to say how The Babysitter: Killer Queen repeats the same themes of its predecessor. It bamboozles its way to the original plot, somehow resurfacing Cole’s enemies who are this increasingly violent satanic cult but the only difference is, he’s living with these experiences with trauma rather than innocence. This was an excuse to have some fun, and while I am a hoot at parties, Netflix could have easily placed the budget for this film elsewhere.
It glazes itself on the belief that the concept can be rehashed in a sequel, but Netflix can throw all its marketing at this series but it will never be able to overcome the uniqueness and quirkiness of the first installment that surprisingly did better critically (72% on Rotten Tomatoes for a horror-comedy ain’t bad). Netflix’s The Babysitter: Killer Queen tries to make the ordeal more of a mountain, refusing to stay within the confines of a house and widening the landscape. It makes a concept that was already silly (but fresh) feel sillier (and stupid). It’s a shame because the original was rewatchable, but the sequel dampens its purpose and sours the original ingredients.
I’m not discounting the cast at all. There’s clearly a measure of fun when The Babysitter: Killer Queen was filmed but the overriding factor is that you get bored rather quickly. Audiences do not care about Cole enough and his innocence to wonder what happened after he survived a house assault from his babysitter. And why did we not care? Because it was so clearly meant to be a one-off.
The Babysitter: Killer Queen does prove that with a content-driven world, there will always be a need for a sequel, even if it does not make sense.
