Bedtime Stories – GC Movie Review

On a visit to his newly divorced sister Wendy’s (Courtney Cox) house, Skeeter discovers that due to a recently announced school closing, Wendy will be losing her job as school principal. She must then go to Arizona to seek out a new employment. In the meantime, she asks Skeeter to take care of her children, Bobbi (Laura Ann Kesling) and Patrick (Jonathan Morgan Heit) along with her vegan buddy Julie (Keri Russell).

With no experience babysitting, but equipped with a wonderful imagination, Skeeter sets about telling Patrick and Bobbi elaborate and magical stories that range from medieval to an old western to stories set in outer space. Each story has an under appreciated local guy, Skeeter, who people like and an overachieving bully which Skeeter actually has at the hotel, played by (Guy Pierce) and both are vying for the heart of the beautiful girl (Teresa Palmer), and more respect at work.   

Skeeter soon realizes that as the children participate in adding to his stories, their parts began coming true. With a beautiful girl and the possibility of his “shot,“ a huge promotion at work on the line, Skeeter begins to try to manipulate the stories in order to obtain what he wants in life. The children’s stories become the source by which he decides the next day and his future.

(Keri Russell) plays Julie, the upright moral co-babysitter who’s constantly at odds with Skeeter and his version of proper child care. He feeds the kids burgers, let‘s them watch TV and eat junk food, yet somehow he and Julie work perfectly together. Skeeter’s other grown-up friend is Mickey (Russell Brand) his British cohort and waiter at the hotel. Mickey lends his comic humor and heart to these stories, and benefits from his role in them as well. 

Screenwriters Matt Lopez and Tim Herlihy are not trying to explain the existence or non-existence of magic and how it works, or whether our imaginations should drive us or not. They just want to entertain the child in all of us. You don’t question in impossibility of jumping from one time period to the next. You, instead find yourself anxiously awaiting the next story.