Le journal d'une baby-sitter

I knew absolutely nothing about this movie going in. Didn't know who was in it or what it was going to be about. To my surprise I enjoyed the well made movie very much. It had great acting, a solid story, and whiles not being original had its own unique charms that makes it a very enjoyable movie.

-The movie tells the story of Annie, who is a recent graduate plucked into a world she wasn't expecting. She plans to be a financial consultant or something like that but ends being a nanny by chance. The rest of the movie follows her on her adventure as she learns what it takes to be a nanny in NY, and also learns what it takes to survive life.

-The film-making technique is not necessarily an original one in which the main character narrates the whole story but what helps in this one is that its quite an entertaining narration and she doesn't narrate the whole movie so it does help. The odd visual style is also nicely done with some unique effects and one really weird scene in which we see Annie flying through New York all Mary Poppins style.

-Scarlett Johansson is building quite an impressive resume with this brilliant movie. Last year she was great in "The Prestige" and now this year she knocks it out of the park in this. I unlike 99.7% of men don't find her hot nor do I fantasize about her, but she is a very good actress and I hope she gets more roles that showcases her acting assets like this one did.

Singer turned actress Alicia Keys plays the best friend Lynette. She's not featured an awful lot in the movie, but the small doses of her are well acted.

Laura Linney plays the cold and kinda misunderstood Mrs. X. Yeah she seems like z shrewd cold hearted woman when we first meet her, but after getting to know her husband Mr. X played the great Paul Giamatti, we begin to understand why she does certain things that she does. Linney has one great scene towards the end of the movie in which she realizes what horrible mother she has been and the way Linney plays that scene is truly the stuff of great acting. Instead of going all over emotional, she simply just lets a tear fall down her face and that simple tear just nails everything she's feeling at that moment.

At the end of the day I really enjoyed this fun movie. It had comedy, romance, child abuse and life lessons. It may not have great replay value but the first viewing should please everyone that watches it.

Recommended

When this movie was unceremoniously yanked back in April 2007, right before its initially scheduled release, I thought it must be pretty bad. I had enjoyed the book, and so was already disappointed. But I decided to see it anyway, just out of curiosity. At first, I found myself finding fault...like when the preschool doors just open up and small children pour out of it onto the street. Like that's going to happen in an urban area ANYWHERE in this country what with all the fear of kidnapping we have these days. That and a few other little niggly details bothered me at first, but as the movie went on, I found myself caring about the characters; enjoying the story. It's not like the book, but that's probably good. I don't think the book is written in a way that would translate well to the big screen. The ending was a bit happier than the book, but in this kind of movie, the happy ending was welcome. I found myself enjoying this movie in spite of my own predisposition to be underwhelmed by it. It's not going to win any Oscars or anything, but I thought it a find effort for all involved, particularly Laura Linney, Paul Giamatti, and Scarlet Johansen!

This is an entertaining feature, if not as enjoyable as 'The Devil Wears Prada'. 'The Nanny Diaries' takes aim at upper class New Yorkers who neglect their kids leaving them with their hassled nannies. There are numerous stinging barbs and Laura Linney is excellent in a slightly underwritten role as the tyrannical employer. Scarlett Johansson is good as the confused college graduate who bravely enters the bizarre world of New York nannies. Paul Giamatti turns in yet another fine performance as the uncaring adulterous husband. The film is a trifle weak dramatically but the satire more than makes up for it.

Overall 7/10

Many seem to be disappointed with 'The Nanny Dairies' because of its failure to properly deliver the social commentary about New York women of different class. However, I agree to an extent that it does not go into the depth of the theme in order to be a good satire but it remained nonetheless an entertaining flick. The film seems to mainly focus on Annie's view of the upper class (as she works as a nanny for such a family) and therein lies a danger, where she pretty much (as we are shown), in her own assessment generalizes her conclusion from one experience and in the other cases, with one encounter.

Now regarding the family she works for, Mr.X is a complete caricature of the businessman jerk who constantly cheats on his wife by shagging anything wearing short skirts or hotpants and he is bitter towards his family (including wife, son and even own mother). Mrs. X is portrayed under a more humane light. She is definitely in denial about a marriage that has already been long dead and she copes with it by avoiding herself from her own son and giving more focus to trivial away-from-home activities while believing that her husband still loves her. Amidst all this, it is the son who suffers.

Scarlett Johanssen is a miscast. She does not seem comfortable with comedy (as has been evident as well in Woody Allen's 'Scoop') and her outburst scene in the end looks theatrical. However, she is quite good in the scenes that display Annie's stress and fatigue while taking care of Grayer and overall, Johanssen does try to deliver. The child actor does not convince. Alicia Keys is forgettable and Chris Evans plays the clichéd rich white guy boyfriend. Ravishing Laura Linney is fabulous. Her character is technically a bitch but there is a vulnerability and depth that she draws which allows the audience to somewhat sympathize for Mrs. X. Paul Giamatti suffers from bad writing.

Despite the flaws, 'The Nannie Diaries' was quite enjoyable. I was not bored. I laughed at a few scenes and was interested to know what Scarlett's Annie would do to finally confront Mrs. X. The sets, though typical New York, was nice to look at. The Mary Poppins reference with the Umbrella was a bit pointless. In my opinion, this film is much better than the likes of pretentious movies like 'The Devil Wears Prada'.

As another reviewer pointed out-> "Better than expected". So if your expectations are low, you will be positively surprised. I watched it a sneak preview with some friends. I guess Scarlett Johansson haters won't like the movie from the start, but everyone else can give it a shot.

Yes it is predictable, yes it has it's awkward moments, but it's also likable. The cast is stellar throughout, most of the jokes work and the kid performer walks a fine line, but always stays/plays it straight. The movie keeps a light tone overall, but has it's dark(er) moments too. They might not work for everyone (and some might hate the ending), but overall it's a decent movie (effort)