One of my favorite movies from childhood is Adventures in Babysitting. We own it because it’s one of those films I can pop in whenever I just want to smile, and I know I’ll have a good time. The quotes are fabulous; can anyone who’s seen it forget:
“Don’t f*** with the Lords of Hell!”
“Don’t f*** with the babysitter!!”
Or, my personal favorite:
“Nobody leaves this place without singing the blues.”
The characters are iconic – the nice kid, the horny teen, the bratty little sister, and the beleaguered babysitter – and the cast plays them with just the right tongue and cheek. And, of course, 80s fashions are the delightful icing on the cake. (Plus, seeing Elizabeth Shue and Anthony Rapp – better known as the original Mark in RENT – as young’uns is fun.)
But this time as I watched the movie, I had a revelation. I fundamentally agree with the moral foundation of the film. Now, I’m not sure if I love it so much because I have this link with it or if if this movie influenced me, but I realized (to paraphrase the old Fulghum book) “All I really need to know (about working with people) I learned from Adventures in Babysitting.”
- Just because somebody looks frightening doesn’t mean they plan to do you harm (John Pruit, the guy with the hook, who pulls over to help them)
- If someone is nice and helpful, they can still lack good judgment. (Pruit drives them to his house to shoot his wife’s lover)
- The lower a person is on the crime tree, the more likely they are to have similar values to you; it’s the higher ups who are truly dangerous (the car thief vs. the mucky-mucks in the thieving ring)
- Most people don’t want to hurt you, they just want to get their job – whatever that is – done. The best way to stay safe is to not get in the way. (If they hadn’t stolen the magazine, they probably wouldn’t have been chased)
- People will appreciate you if you get into the spirit of things; they don’t really care if you’ve got talent. (“Babysitting Blues” – Best. Scene. Ever.)
- Most people are helpful if you give them something concrete that you need (the college guy and the $50)
- The hardest hearts can be softened by a gift given sincerely (Thor and the helmet)
- You deserve people who respect you for who you are and the choices you make (Chris’s old boyfriend vs. the college guy)
- True friendships are made through shared struggle (Chris, Brad, Daryl, and Sara through the movie)
- With few exceptions, everyone is a combination of good and bad. We will get through life best if we look for both. Expecting everyone to live up to your expectations of what people “should” be will get you taken advantage of (not to mention you will be disappointed when people inevitably fail your impossible standards). Expecting everyone (particularly everyone “different” than you, however you define that) to be dangerous will leave you alone when you need help the most. Never pigeonhole anyone as a “bad person” or a “good person” – accept that they’re both. Only then can you figure out how to work with them.
See? Isn’t that way more profound than a comedy should be? And because there is no help for it, I present one of my all-time favorite scenes from any movie: Babysitting Blues.
