As if high school isn’t already bad enough, let’s throw in evil rituals and murderous teenagers. That said, The Babysitter: Killer Queen, Netflix’s much anticipated sequel to the 2017 Horror hit The Babysitter, tries to once again breathes new life into the Horror Comedy genre.
Hitting Netflix on September 10th, The Babysitter: Killer Queen is set two years after the events of the previous film. The now high school junior, Cole (Judah Lewis: Demolition 2015, The Babysitter 2017) is trying to forget the night a Satanic cult, led by his babysitter Bee (Samara Weaving: Mayhem 2017, Ready or Not 2019), who tried to kill him.
Unfortunately, because telling everyone that your babysitter and her friends tried to murder you is as far-fetched as you can get, no one believes Cole about what transpired that night. His parents try to keep him medicated in-between sessions with the school counselor whose main advice is for him to get laid. While most of his peers torment him on a regular basis, the only one who believes Cole is his friend Melanie (Emily Alyn Lind: Revenge series, Doctor Sleep 2019), who was there the night of the incident. To escape for a while, Melanie convinces Cole to skip school for a lake getaway – because there’s no way that will end badly.
Things go haywire as the night turns deadly and old enemies begin showing up one after the other. In a similar fashion to the first, the gang is back together to finish what they started: kill Cole and finish the ritual once and for all. We have Max (Robbie Amell: ARQ 2016, Code 8 2019) in all his shirtless glory, the incredibly vapid Allison (Bella Thorne: Blended 2014, Scream series), John (Andrew “King Bach” Bachelor: The Babysitter 2017, When We First Met 2018) spouting one-liners reminiscent of his Vine days, and the cryptic Sonya (Hana Mae Lee: Perfect Pitch 2012, Patriot 2017) with her heavy-winged liner.
The comedic moments and kills are just as ridiculous and cheesy as the first, but The Babysitter: Killer Queen is a film that knows exactly what it is and does not mind letting you know that. It is excessively bloody with over-the-top kills that add to this train wreck in the best way possible. The only downfall is the excessive use of digital blood which only heightens the cheese-factor. Films truly underestimate the power of practical effects.
While it has a familiarity, there is still a lot of fresh meat to sink your teeth into to make this film a separate entity. Joining the cast is Phoebe (Jenna Ortega: Insidious: Chapter 2 2013, Iron Man 3 2013), who you might recognize from season two of Netflix’s You. Ortega’s mysterious and totally badass character has enough trauma to match Cole’s, which makes her the perfect pairing to help him survive the night. Throw in an unfamiliar location, new dangers, and a completely new group of equally deranged teenagers and you have a recipe for a good time.
Cole’s parents (Leslie Bibb: Iron Man 2008, Law Abiding Citizen 2009) (Ken Marino: The State series, Wanderlust 2012) are also more of a presence this time around, particularly his dad, as he teams up with Melanie’s “Joe Exotic looking” and equally as annoying dad (Chris Wlyde: Space Cowboys 2000, The Revenant 2009) to find their kids. We also get a look into the backstories of our demon cult to see why they turned to the devil in the first place. None of it is surprising, especially because we get brief explanations in the previous film, the standout being Max’s fantasy to just kill someone.
Overall, this is not an Academy Award winning movie. It’s outrageously ridiculous and riddled with one-liners that don’t have a high success rate. However, it is still an entertaining film with bright moments that make you feel like you have had a good time when the credits start to roll. Either way, if you were a fan of the first film, then The Babysitter: Killer Queen is a must-see. For these reasons, Cryptic Rock gives this movie 3 out of 5 stars.
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