Film Review – Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead (2024)

1991’s “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” didn’t do much damage at the box office during its summer run, but home video was very kind to the teen comedy. A cult following developed, creating a sort of secret handshake cinema event with movie quotes, but little was done with the brand name over the decades. The team at BET have finally cracked the seal on a remake, supplying an update of the now 33-year-old picture (ouch), largely retaining the plot of the original endeavor while adding a more modern take on humor. The ’91 film wasn’t fantastic, but it offered some edgy touches and a few strong performances. The do-over doesn’t even reach those modest achievements, with writer Chuck Hayward (TV’s “Dear White People”) and director Wade Allain-Marcus (“Die in a Gunfight”) delivering a largely lifeless and laugh-free viewing experience, failing to improve on the earlier feature. I wasn’t permitted to screen “Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead” for review this week, and now I understand why. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com