YMMV / The Babysitter (2017)

• Alternative Character Interpretation:
  • After they killed the cops and forced Cole to give them the police codes, did the cultists plan to recruit Cole into the cult? Aside from Max kicking him to the floor (which could be to protect him from getting shot), the cultists don't further hurt or even threaten him, and it's only when Cole kills John when they actually try to kill him.
  • As soon as Cole came to earlier, Bee forced Cole to eat a cookie due to his blood pressure being low. Was it out of genuine concern, was it a misguided attempt to calm him down and get her back in his good graces or was it to intimidate him?
  • Sonya acts strangely affectionate to Cole, stroking his hair, calling him a "good boy" and feeding him a cookie. Is it because she likes little boys, because she likes little boys or because she simply wants to creep Cole out?
  • Was Bee telling the truth when she said she was only shooting around Cole with the shotgun? While she does kill Allison and attempt to recruit him into the cult later on, Bee didn't shout for Cole to surrender while chasing him, simply shooting at/around him.
  • Max might have been horrifically bullied when he was younger, something of a male Carrie who eventually went full evil because Evil Feels Good.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: Robbie Amell's Max is probably the most popular character of the movie due to his status as Mr. Fanservice as well as being an Affably Evil Ax-Crazy Lovable Jock. He's generally agreed to be both one of the most interesting, entertaining, and original characters.
• Epileptic Trees: There seem to be two fan theories concerning Melanie, judging by the comments on trailers for the sequel:
  • The first theory is that Melanie has joined Bee's cult, with fans calling attention to the trailer's final scene which shows Melanie standing in front of Cole (who's tied to a chair) as Bee emerges from the lake. It's caused many to speculate that it's the real reason she's insisted on taking Cole to the lake, possibly as part of a deal. This theory turns out to be correct.
  • The other theory is that the sequel will reveal that Melanie and Bee are sisters. Or, barring that, that the two of them are somehow connected, due to Melanie's uncanny resemblance to Bee and her strange behavior towards the end of the trailer. This particular theory was not confirmed in the sequel.
• Genius Bonus: The first police code that Cole gives the cult, 1053, means "man down."
• Magnificent Bitch: Bee, in addition to being the world's best babysitter, is a ruthless and manipulative satanist who made a pact with the Devil. Bringing together cults and stealing the blood of kids she babysits, Bee lures over sacrifices to kill and drink the mixed blood with the cult. After seemingly being defeated by her charge, protagonist Cole Johnson, Bee later repents of evil and spends her time manipulating her former cult to help Cole, bringing him together with her first charge Phoebe Atwell, in the hopes that she and Cole will hook up and render his "innocent" blood tainted to the demonic cultists.
• Narm: The fact that Allison is sent flying across the room after being shot by a tiny handgun.
• Narm Charm: The fact that Allison is sent flying across the room after being shot by a tiny handgun is part of the film's madcap Black Comedy.
• Nightmare Fuel:
  • While the film leans heavily on the comedy side, Sonya maniacally crawling towards Cole in the crawlspace is genuinely frightening, with her pondering when Cole's parents will find his body and then threatening to cut his fingers off.
  • Despite being incredibly over-the-top, Samuel's grisly murder at Bee's hands is quite unsettling. He gets two knives shoved into his head (one of which has to be forced in further after the inital stab), screams in horrible pain, and lives way longer than he should have. All while Bee looks at him with an expression that implies she is enjoying it.
  • The post-credits ending. A fireman is walking through Cole's wrecked house, investigating after the events of the film. He notices a sharp piece of wood on the ground and continues exploring...only for Bee to suddenly attack and kill him with it in a very sudden Jump Scare with a surprisingly unnerving Nightmare Face that makes it look as though her remaining sanity is gone completely.
• She Really Can Act: While Bella Thorne had given other good performances before this, her Disney star reputation left a lot of viewers skeptical of her acting abilities. Needless to say, they were surprised and impressed by how well she portrayed the cheerleader of the teen group, citing her as one of the most entertaining characters.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character: John is entertainingly and gorily but unceremoniously killed off when Cole frees himself, runs upstairs and kicks him over a railing when John pursues him. Aside from fulfilling a rather dated trope, as one of the more hyper members of the cult, John would have been great for banter with Cole later on.