Baby's Day Out
Encyclopedia
Baby's Day Out is a 1994 comedy film
, written by John Hughes and produced by Richard Vane and John Hughes, and directed by Patrick Read Johnson
. The film stars Joe Mantegna
, Joe Pantoliano
and Brian Haley
, as well as twins Adam and Jacob Worton as Baby Bink. The plot centers around a wealthy baby's capture by three incompetent kidnappers, his escape and adventure through a big city while being pursued by the three kidnappers.
The film was a box office bomb
and panned by critics and moviegoers alike.
) and Bennington (Matthew Glave
), lives in a huge mansion in a suburb of Chicago
, and is just about to appear in the social pages of the newspaper. Three klutzy would-be kidnappers: Edgar "Eddie" Mauser (Joe Mantegna
), Norbert "Norby" LeBlaw (Joe Pantoliano
), and Victor "Veeko" Riley (Brian Haley
), the main antagonists, disguise themselves as the photographers from the paper and kidnap him. After the kidnapping they have difficulty controlling him. In the trial of trying to get him to fall asleep Norby does so reading Bink's book, leaving him unattended. Looking through it he notices a bird on the page and then by the window. He follows it out and successfully gets away from his kidnappers, with Eddie falling off the building and into a garbage bin.
The FBI arrives at the mansion, headed by Dale Grissom (Fred Dalton Thompson
), where they try to piece together clues along with Bink's parents and his loving nanny Gilbertine (Cynthia Nixon
). Meanwhile, he, now outside on the ground and crawling about, finds another part of his book, the blue bus, which he then boards. The kidnappers realize he is missing and start chasing the bus in their van but their efforts are in vain. Meanwhile on the bus Bink crawls into the bag of an obese
lady who gets off at her stop shortly afterwards. By the time the trio catches it, and realize Bink is not on board, they then realize that he crawled into the lady's bag and follow her. An altercation ensues after they insult her, and while they attempt their escape, Bink crawls up to a revolving door at the entrance to a department store and is forced inwards by its momentum.
Crawling through the department store, Bink is stopped by a worker who works for Mother Goose Corner, a nearby day care center, who believes he is another baby who escaped from there. He later escapes there and the store and eventually crawls into traffic. The kidnappers attempt to follow him but keep getting injured in the process as he makes his way to the city zoo. They find him in the primate house with a gorilla
and lose hope of gaining their ransom money. It shows a maternal side and does not injure him. The kidnappers try to retrieve him but it notices and bashes Veeko's hand, throws Norby into the air using a mopstick as a catapult, and hurls Eddie against the bars of the cage opposite its own.
The kidnappers eventually corner and catch Bink in the zoo's park, but are confronted by two friendly police officers, who have noticed that their van's engine is still running. During the conversation, Eddie hides Bink under his coat in his lap, but he reaches Eddie's cigarette lighter, sets his crotch on fire, and sneaks off as soon as the officers are gone. Veeko extinguishes the fire by stomping repeatedly on Eddie's groin. They follow Bink to a construction yard, but are still unable to catch him, with Veeko getting thrown off the building and into the back of a garbage truck, Norby falling into a vat of wet cement, and Eddie getting stranded on a crane after being drenched in glue. The sun sets as Bink leaves the construction yard. The kidnappers manage to escape (offscreen), but decide to give up and go home.
Bink's parents are notified of various sightings of him in the city and Gilbertine deduces that he has been following his favorite book, "Baby's Day Out" (or "Boo-Boo", as Bink calls it) and will most likely head for the Old Soldiers' Home next. Sure enough, they find him there, but on the way home, he begins to call out "Boo-Boo" toward the kidnappers' flat. The FBI moves in on there and arrests Eddie, Veeko, and Norby demanding that they return his book first.
Back home, Bink is put to bed by his family. As his parents discuss having his picture taken by a normal photographer in the morning, he wakes up and gets ready to read another book, this one entitled "Baby's Trip to China".
, with 3 positive reviews from 14.
On the Siskel & Ebert show, Roger Ebert
wrote that "'Baby's Day Out' contains gags that might have worked in a Baby Herman cartoon, but in live action, with real people, taxis, buses, streets, and a real baby, they're just not funny. The Worton twins are adorable as Baby Bink, however; the audience produced an audible coo the first time they saw him on the screen." He gave the film 1 1/2 stars. His partner, Gene Siskel, however liked the film because he thought that young children will love it for the humor.
In contrast Hal Hinson, writing for the Washington Post wrote "The pace is quick and efficient but never frantic...almost everything in the picture is just right, including the two-bit crooks who abduct the superhero toddler and end up bruised and begging hilariously for mercy. Best of all, though, is the Binkman himself, whose tiny face is so expressive that he brings new meaning to the phrase "conquering with a smile."
In 2010, Red Letter Media delivered a scathing video critique of the film, drawing negative comparisons to The Three Stooges, Looney Tunes
, and Home Alone
.
However, not all reviews were negative. Joel Siegel of Good Morning America liked the film because it was "fun...it's a scream". Also, Michael Medved
of the New York Post thought the film was "undeniably, irresistibly, irrationally funny". The film opened with takings of $4,044,662 at the start of July 1994, the 83rd top performing of 1994.
It was also the 26th best performing PG-rated family film of the year in 1994.
sites. One is a near completed version while the other is a very early beta. The gameplay might be an obvious factor as to why the game was pulled; instead of playing as Bink (as one might think would be the case) the player controls what appears to be an angel
. The object is to use it to guide Bink to safety away from robbers.
in 1995 under the title Sisindri
with Akhil (son of Telugu actor Akkineni Nagarjuna
) playing the lead role, and again into Malayalam in 1999 under the title James Bond
.
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
, written by John Hughes and produced by Richard Vane and John Hughes, and directed by Patrick Read Johnson
Patrick Read Johnson
Patrick Read Johnson in Wadsworth, Illinois) is an American film director, producer, and writer.-Movie career:Johnson is best known for his directorial work on the films Spaced Invaders, Angus, Baby's Day Out, The Genesis Code and 77. He also has written and produced such films as Dragonheart...
. The film stars Joe Mantegna
Joe Mantegna
Joseph Anthony "Joe" Mantegna, Jr. is an American actor, producer, writer,director, and voice actor. He is best known for his roles in box office hits such as Three Amigos , The Godfather Part III , Forget Paris , and Up Close & Personal...
, Joe Pantoliano
Joe Pantoliano
Joseph Peter "Joe" Pantoliano is an American film and television actor. He played the character of Ralph Cifaretto on The Sopranos, Bob Keane in La Bamba, Cypher in The Matrix, Teddy in Memento, Francis Fratelli in The Goonies, Guido "the Killer Pimp" in Risky Business, and Jennifer Tilly's...
and Brian Haley
Brian Haley
Brian Haley is an American actor and stand-up comedian. His stand-up act is characterized by playing his all-American looks against manic outbursts and absurd situations...
, as well as twins Adam and Jacob Worton as Baby Bink. The plot centers around a wealthy baby's capture by three incompetent kidnappers, his escape and adventure through a big city while being pursued by the three kidnappers.
The film was a box office bomb
Box office bomb
The phrase box office bomb refers to a film for which the production and marketing costs greatly exceeded the revenue regained by the movie studio. This should not be confused with Hollywood accounting when official figures show large losses, yet the movie is a financial success.A film's financial...
and panned by critics and moviegoers alike.
Plot
Baby Bink Cotwell (Adamme and Jacob Worton), the very naughty baby, has adoring parents Laraine (Lara Flynn BoyleLara Flynn Boyle
Lara Flynn Boyle is an American film and television actress best known for her performances as Laura Palmer's best friend Donna Hayward in Twin Peaks and Assistant District Attorney Helen Gamble in The Practice...
) and Bennington (Matthew Glave
Matthew Glave
Matthew G. Glave , an American film and television actor.-Personal:Glave attended Ohio University.He is married to Anita Barone and has two daughters, Madeline and Roxanne.-Career:...
), lives in a huge mansion in a suburb of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and is just about to appear in the social pages of the newspaper. Three klutzy would-be kidnappers: Edgar "Eddie" Mauser (Joe Mantegna
Joe Mantegna
Joseph Anthony "Joe" Mantegna, Jr. is an American actor, producer, writer,director, and voice actor. He is best known for his roles in box office hits such as Three Amigos , The Godfather Part III , Forget Paris , and Up Close & Personal...
), Norbert "Norby" LeBlaw (Joe Pantoliano
Joe Pantoliano
Joseph Peter "Joe" Pantoliano is an American film and television actor. He played the character of Ralph Cifaretto on The Sopranos, Bob Keane in La Bamba, Cypher in The Matrix, Teddy in Memento, Francis Fratelli in The Goonies, Guido "the Killer Pimp" in Risky Business, and Jennifer Tilly's...
), and Victor "Veeko" Riley (Brian Haley
Brian Haley
Brian Haley is an American actor and stand-up comedian. His stand-up act is characterized by playing his all-American looks against manic outbursts and absurd situations...
), the main antagonists, disguise themselves as the photographers from the paper and kidnap him. After the kidnapping they have difficulty controlling him. In the trial of trying to get him to fall asleep Norby does so reading Bink's book, leaving him unattended. Looking through it he notices a bird on the page and then by the window. He follows it out and successfully gets away from his kidnappers, with Eddie falling off the building and into a garbage bin.
The FBI arrives at the mansion, headed by Dale Grissom (Fred Dalton Thompson
Fred Dalton Thompson
Fred Dalton Thompson , is an American politician, actor, attorney, lobbyist, columnist, and radio host. He served as a Republican U.S...
), where they try to piece together clues along with Bink's parents and his loving nanny Gilbertine (Cynthia Nixon
Cynthia Nixon
Cynthia Ellen Nixon is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City . She has received two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award....
). Meanwhile, he, now outside on the ground and crawling about, finds another part of his book, the blue bus, which he then boards. The kidnappers realize he is missing and start chasing the bus in their van but their efforts are in vain. Meanwhile on the bus Bink crawls into the bag of an obese
Obesity
Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems...
lady who gets off at her stop shortly afterwards. By the time the trio catches it, and realize Bink is not on board, they then realize that he crawled into the lady's bag and follow her. An altercation ensues after they insult her, and while they attempt their escape, Bink crawls up to a revolving door at the entrance to a department store and is forced inwards by its momentum.
Crawling through the department store, Bink is stopped by a worker who works for Mother Goose Corner, a nearby day care center, who believes he is another baby who escaped from there. He later escapes there and the store and eventually crawls into traffic. The kidnappers attempt to follow him but keep getting injured in the process as he makes his way to the city zoo. They find him in the primate house with a gorilla
Gorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
and lose hope of gaining their ransom money. It shows a maternal side and does not injure him. The kidnappers try to retrieve him but it notices and bashes Veeko's hand, throws Norby into the air using a mopstick as a catapult, and hurls Eddie against the bars of the cage opposite its own.
The kidnappers eventually corner and catch Bink in the zoo's park, but are confronted by two friendly police officers, who have noticed that their van's engine is still running. During the conversation, Eddie hides Bink under his coat in his lap, but he reaches Eddie's cigarette lighter, sets his crotch on fire, and sneaks off as soon as the officers are gone. Veeko extinguishes the fire by stomping repeatedly on Eddie's groin. They follow Bink to a construction yard, but are still unable to catch him, with Veeko getting thrown off the building and into the back of a garbage truck, Norby falling into a vat of wet cement, and Eddie getting stranded on a crane after being drenched in glue. The sun sets as Bink leaves the construction yard. The kidnappers manage to escape (offscreen), but decide to give up and go home.
Bink's parents are notified of various sightings of him in the city and Gilbertine deduces that he has been following his favorite book, "Baby's Day Out" (or "Boo-Boo", as Bink calls it) and will most likely head for the Old Soldiers' Home next. Sure enough, they find him there, but on the way home, he begins to call out "Boo-Boo" toward the kidnappers' flat. The FBI moves in on there and arrests Eddie, Veeko, and Norby demanding that they return his book first.
Back home, Bink is put to bed by his family. As his parents discuss having his picture taken by a normal photographer in the morning, he wakes up and gets ready to read another book, this one entitled "Baby's Trip to China".
Cast
- Meghan and Jacob Worton as Baby Bink Cotwell
- Lara Flynn BoyleLara Flynn BoyleLara Flynn Boyle is an American film and television actress best known for her performances as Laura Palmer's best friend Donna Hayward in Twin Peaks and Assistant District Attorney Helen Gamble in The Practice...
as Laraine Cotwell - Matthew GlaveMatthew GlaveMatthew G. Glave , an American film and television actor.-Personal:Glave attended Ohio University.He is married to Anita Barone and has two daughters, Madeline and Roxanne.-Career:...
as Bennington Austin "Bing" Cotwell, Sr. - Joe MantegnaJoe MantegnaJoseph Anthony "Joe" Mantegna, Jr. is an American actor, producer, writer,director, and voice actor. He is best known for his roles in box office hits such as Three Amigos , The Godfather Part III , Forget Paris , and Up Close & Personal...
as Edgar "Eddie" Mauser - Joe PantolianoJoe PantolianoJoseph Peter "Joe" Pantoliano is an American film and television actor. He played the character of Ralph Cifaretto on The Sopranos, Bob Keane in La Bamba, Cypher in The Matrix, Teddy in Memento, Francis Fratelli in The Goonies, Guido "the Killer Pimp" in Risky Business, and Jennifer Tilly's...
as Norbert "Norby" LeBlaw - Brian HaleyBrian HaleyBrian Haley is an American actor and stand-up comedian. His stand-up act is characterized by playing his all-American looks against manic outbursts and absurd situations...
as Victor "Veeko" Riley - Cynthia NixonCynthia NixonCynthia Ellen Nixon is an American actress, known for her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series Sex and the City . She has received two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award....
as Gilbertine - Fred Dalton ThompsonFred Dalton ThompsonFred Dalton Thompson , is an American politician, actor, attorney, lobbyist, columnist, and radio host. He served as a Republican U.S...
as Dale Grissom - Magda SzubanskiMagda SzubanskiMagda Szubanski is a British-born Australian actress, comedian, television presenter, radio host and author.Szubanski's career began while she was studying at university and she progressed to television sketch comedy, as both a writer and performer...
as Ursula - Trevor Dalton as Norm
- John Neville as Mr. Andrews
- Eddie BrackenEddie BrackenEdward Vincent "Eddie" Bracken was an American actor.-Life and career:Bracken was born in Astoria, New York, the son of Catherine and Joseph L. Bracken. Bracken performed in vaudeville at the age of nine and gained fame with the Broadway musical Too Many Girls in a role he reprised for the 1940...
as Old Soldier - Dawn MaxeyDawn MaxeyDawn Maxey an American actress, known for her side starring roles in several 1990s movies.-Early life and beginning career:Maxey was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She attended Ohio University...
as Teenage Employee (Mother Goose Corner) - Verne TroyerVerne TroyerVerne J. Troyer is an American stand-up comedian, actor, stuntman and performer, best known for playing Mini-Me in the Austin Powers series...
as Baby Bink's stunt double
Critical response
Baby's Day Out holds a 21% "rotten" approval rating at the review website Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
, with 3 positive reviews from 14.
On the Siskel & Ebert show, Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
wrote that "'Baby's Day Out' contains gags that might have worked in a Baby Herman cartoon, but in live action, with real people, taxis, buses, streets, and a real baby, they're just not funny. The Worton twins are adorable as Baby Bink, however; the audience produced an audible coo the first time they saw him on the screen." He gave the film 1 1/2 stars. His partner, Gene Siskel, however liked the film because he thought that young children will love it for the humor.
In contrast Hal Hinson, writing for the Washington Post wrote "The pace is quick and efficient but never frantic...almost everything in the picture is just right, including the two-bit crooks who abduct the superhero toddler and end up bruised and begging hilariously for mercy. Best of all, though, is the Binkman himself, whose tiny face is so expressive that he brings new meaning to the phrase "conquering with a smile."
In 2010, Red Letter Media delivered a scathing video critique of the film, drawing negative comparisons to The Three Stooges, Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
, and Home Alone
Home Alone
Home Alone is a 1990 American Christmas comedy film written and produced by John Hughes and directed by Chris Columbus. The film stars Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister, an eight-year-old boy, who is mistakenly left behind when his family flies to Paris for their Christmas vacation...
.
However, not all reviews were negative. Joel Siegel of Good Morning America liked the film because it was "fun...it's a scream". Also, Michael Medved
Michael Medved
Michael Medved is an American radio host, author, political commentator and film critic. His Seattle, Washington-based nationally syndicated talk show, The Michael Medved Show, airs throughout the U.S...
of the New York Post thought the film was "undeniably, irresistibly, irrationally funny". The film opened with takings of $4,044,662 at the start of July 1994, the 83rd top performing of 1994.
Box office
The film grossed $16,827,402 at the domestic box office, a disappointing return considering the $48 million production budget for the film. It ranked at #83 for the best performing films of 1994 and ranks in the top 3,000 best grossing films of all time.It was also the 26th best performing PG-rated family film of the year in 1994.
Video game
A video game version of the film was planned to be released on Sega Genesis, but was later canceled. Two prototypes can be found for download on several ROMRead-only memory
Read-only memory is a class of storage medium used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM cannot be modified, or can be modified only slowly or with difficulty, so it is mainly used to distribute firmware .In its strictest sense, ROM refers only...
sites. One is a near completed version while the other is a very early beta. The gameplay might be an obvious factor as to why the game was pulled; instead of playing as Bink (as one might think would be the case) the player controls what appears to be an angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
. The object is to use it to guide Bink to safety away from robbers.
Popularity in India and Remakes
Baby's Day Out was tremendously popular in South Asia, including India and Pakistan, playing at the largest theater in Calcutta for over a year It was even remade twice, once in TeluguTelugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
in 1995 under the title Sisindri
Sisindri
Sisindri is a 1995 Telugu comedy / family film directed by Shiva Nageswara Rao. It is a remake of Hollywood flick Baby's Day Out . Akhil Akkineni made his debut through this film. The cast includes Nagarjuna Akkineni, Giribabu, Tanikella Bharani, Sudhakar, Aamani, Sarath Babu, Subhalekha Sudhakar...
with Akhil (son of Telugu actor Akkineni Nagarjuna
Akkineni Nagarjuna
Akkineni Nagarjuna is an Indian film actor in Tollywood and Bollywood. He is a producer and one of the lead actors in Telugu cinema.- Early life :...
) playing the lead role, and again into Malayalam in 1999 under the title James Bond
James Bond (1999 film)
James Bond is a 1999 Malayalam language comedy film directed by Baiju Kottarakkara and starring Premkumar, Kalabhavan Mani, Bheeman Raghu, Indrans, Abi and Vani Viswanath. The film is a remake of 1994 Hollywood film Baby's Day Out.-Plot:...
.