Note: The following is a review for the HD DVD version of Babysitters, a flagship title for Digital Playground that was released in standard definition DVD earlier this year to heaps of praise, garnering various award nominations in numerous categories from industry juggernaut AVN. The content of the movie was the same and the extras barely modified to include HD DVD trailers that show off the higher resolution of the titles that are either out or about to come out in the popular new format. The quick version of the review is that the show looks and sounds substantially better but it always looked pretty good so it's value as a double dip will depend on your wallet but I added pictures to give a better idea of the movie, taken from the SD version of the movie (at this size and compression rate, you wouldn't notice the difference). Enjoy!

Nautica Thorn and Tony negotiating terms (click for HD trailer of movie).

Babysitters HD DVD

Digital Playground

Genre: Vignette

Director: Robby D.

Cast: Nautica Thorn, Tony De Sergio, Sasha Grey, Sascha, Jerry, Jay Lassiter, Charles Dera,  Sophia Santi, Alektra Blue, Lexxi Tyler, Sammie Rhodes, Angie Savage,  Teagan Presley, Tyler Durden,  Shay Jordan, Scott Nails, Gina Lynn, Ben English,  Jesse Jane, Nikki Benz, Tommy Gunn

Non-sex role: Jim F.

Length: 130:34 minutes

Date of Production: 8/6/2007

Extra's: The best extra was the 10:32 minute long Behind the Scenes feature by Jamal Joihnson, Shay Jordan, and Shy Halewd. It had a lot of brief, very cute moments (the bra unhooking moment by geeky Yordi was quite informative too, though there are faster techniques available should he ever need them) but it was too short. There was also a short selection of Bloopers lasting 7:16 minutes that might have otherwise been in the BTS, biographies for Jesse Jane, Teagan Presley, Sophia Santi, and Shay Jordan; a slideshow, a photogallery, as well as trailers to shows like Pirates II, Island Fever 4 HD, Pirates HD, Jesse Jane: Sexual Freak HD, Jack's Teen America 3 HD, Island Fever 3 HD, Hush HD, Jack's POV HD, and Cockasian HD.

Condoms: None

Audio/Video Quality: BabysittersHD DVD was presented in the same 1.78:1 widescreen color it was shot in by director Robby D. for Digital Playground using the VC-1 codec in 1080p resolution. In terms of lighting and quality of picture, the movie looked exceptionally straightforward, shot in true HD with the scenes all being shot using lighting contributing to reduction of grain & video noise here. I saw no compression artifacts or aliasing (the elevated bitrate was much higher in HD), and the composition of the scenes was such that all of the gals were made to look very physically appealing; Teagan seeming to almost glow with the attention given her. Each scene seemed far more like the feature style that Robby used to shoot for the company, losing the artistic & gonzo aspects for the most part while embracing what some fans have requested (with the tag team wonder twins; Willem Default & Sidney Michaels doing the minimal editing this time), though not really strutting his stuff like he used to do either (features are tougher to shoot). It had a 5.1 Dolby Digital+ Surround track in English with some decent separation and dynamic range,  the various selections providing a nice aural setting for the visuals in the location it was shot in. The music seemed like someone spent extra time on it too, maybe since this was reportedly the flagship title of the awards season, so pay attention and use your home theater to appreciate it the most. In terms of the upgraded technical qualities, Babysitters HD DVD was definitely a step up the food chain but given the look/sound of the original release, it was not as large a quantum leap as earlier efforts will likely be (in Digital's upcoming barrage of titles in the format may well prove).

Body of Review: Robby D. has undoubtedly made some of the most visually interesting gonzo material in recent years as a director for Digital Playground, eschewing his roots in features to get right to the heart of the matter with just enough comedy in most of his movies to stay ahead of the crowded field of wannabes. As he continues to branch out in various ways, especially in his Handheld Pictures titles, he still tries new approaches in his works, the latest being Babysitters HD DVD; the company’s major showcase for the contract gals and fastest conversion to the high definition format to date. While not quite a feature but more than a true vignette driven movie (some of the scenes were inter related but only barely), the seven scenes were all themed around sexually promiscuous babysitters, five of them featuring contract hotties such as Jesse Jane, Teagan Presley, Sophia Santi, and Shay Jordan (the movie being shot before Stoya or Adrianna Lynn were  signed on as contract gals). While I never had a major babysitter fantasy (all of mine were mean old broads, not the teenage hotties from porn), the appeal of the idea is much like cheerleaders, nurses, or others that are fantasized about by so many men; making this a great idea for a movie. If you’re still interested, here’s a quick look at the scenes by cast and action, noting that no condoms were used:

Scene One: Nautica Thorn, playing the first babysitter in her glasses and other youthful attire, was up first as harried husband Tony De Sergio found need of her services to assist with the baby. As he shaved and otherwise cleaned up, he started fantasizing about her getting undressed. This led to her telling him to lighten up, the undressing seductively continuing in the living room while she practically forced herself on the effeminate character. Stroking his cock as she stuck her tongue into his mouth, she used her saliva as lubricant; Tony getting into the spirit of the moment by feeling her curvy little ass before her wonderfully active blowjob. He reciprocated by going down on her after getting fully into the swing of things, Nautica bouncing on his cock even more actively than she had blown him (if that were indeed possible). By this point in time, I was looking to call her babysitting agency for some “help” myself, the sweaty couple finishing up when he rubbed out a load of population pudding to her awaiting mouth (giving her a semen goatee). It was a warm start to the movie with the picture looking as good as anything I’ve seen from the company in ages.

Scene Two: Sasha Grey, dressed in a white shirt, short skirt, and a girlish backpack, was up next having had a fight with her boyfriend (well played by cameraman Jim F.). She went to her regular appointment but her babysitting services were not needed this day, but her “other” services in high demand at the sausage party where Sascha, Jerry, Jay Lassiter, and Charles Dera found themselves pleased by the change of events. Jerry’s limited language skills actually worked in his favor for the funny dialogue, Sascha initially being Sasha’s meat puppet of the moment. She went to the couch where he was sitting and earned her extra money the easy way, slobbing his knob until it glistened using her mouth and hand to gland combat style in unison (with more saliva than I’ve ever seen before). She deepthroated the cock as the other men watched, eventually draining his balls dry with a smile before he ran off, but she verbally coaxed the other three to come on over for a blowbang; slobbing their knobs nicely as a result. They pulled her pigtails as she worked them over, even putting two dicks in her mouth at once while she stroked the other; moving her around for best effect (even getting her set up to be covered in saliva herself-at least her head). The men then jerked off to her face, ending this very appealing, if limited, scene.

Scene Three: Sophia Santi, played a seductive dominatrix in red lingerie (as on the front cover), was up next at the ladies party where Alektra Blue, Lexxi Tyler, Sammie Rhodes, and Angie Savage (the female counterparts of the bachelor party from the last scene) were caught off guard by the vision of beauty confronting them. They broke out the toys and started doing themselves and each other with Sophia in charge of the action; pussies being the focal point of the penetration but anal cavities not completely left alone either. They did not pair off as in some movies, the switching around of partners seeming to give the visual buffet more legs than usual (kind of like the old Jim Holliday lesbian orgies on a smaller scale), the toy use getting heavier than I like but showing the gals having fun consistently; if not exactly showing a lot of passion, at least having some chemistry between a few of the players. The use of close ups was a bit distracting too, with so many ladies going at it a medium shot where the viewer can focus on what he wants being more to my tastes.

Scene Four: Teagan Presley, looking extremely good in her outfit from the left hand side of the cover, was up next with tattooed Tyler Durden in the house. They engaged in some playful banter as she was hired to watch his kid brother, Tyler getting caught masturbating when she walked in on him afterwards. Being caught in the act was embarrassing and he played it well (even if too old for the role), Teagan taking charge as she tried to blackmail him into continuing with her in charge of the sexually sparked moment. She then dropped to her knees and practically inhaled his rod, undressing rapidly as she pushed the sexual dynamic further. Regardless of what some people claim, Teagan gets better looking as she ages and while she may not always do the extreme sex she started doing at the beginning of her career, this is balanced out by the fact that she is now aggressively participating in the sex rather than passively laying around in her scenes as she used to. Tyler had the kind of chemistry with her that made the scene even better as he sucked her ass and fingered it while she panted delightfully in heat. That led to an active ride in her pussy and some bouncing in her perfect pucker as they moved to anal action. For the record, it was a bareback anal session too; that being a question I field too much these days. Teagan did some ATM and more anal before he rubbed out his load to her ass; the gal doing some post coital sucking to finish things out. Whew!

Scene Five: Shay Jordan, the hotty on the deep background of the front cover, was up next as she played around with Scott Nails on the bed. They enjoyed some cookies and milk while he kept pushing her to fool around; her booty shorts and tiny yellow top giving me a chubby too (sorry for the visual). She spilt some milk so he started cleaning her off with the only thing around to use (his tongue); Shay masturbating as he went through the dresser drawers to find some handcuffs and bondage gear (“this couldn’t have been better if I wrote the script myself” coming out of his mouth). She really warmed up to the scene by this point, allowing him to spank her and suck her nipples as he blindfolded her and felt her up. He continued by orally stimulating her without her panties on, Shay going a bit over the top on the vocal response but still adding to the fun of the scene. At this point in the scene, she started blowing him, teasing him much like he had done to her before aggressively giving the guy head. That led to a mostly passive vaginal screw but I can fairly say that she looked good glistening in sweat while he pounded her. He rubbed out a load to her crotch and went back to slowly boning her cookie when events transpired to segue way into the next scene (this one proving to have potential that it didn’t live up to).

Scene Six: Gina Lynn, playing the upset housewife that walked in on the couple from the last scene, showed a lot of disappointment in babysitter  Shay Jordan as a yelling Ben English (playing the husband) threatened to call her parents. Gina initiated the sexual antics this time by kissing Shay, remembering long ago when she was a horny 19 year old, leading to Shay playing along by sucking his raging erection. Ben has always played the dominant alpha male role really well and Gina coaxed both of them on as he plunged his rod into Shay’s wet, willing, mouth; the gal concentrating on the tip before Gina showed her how it should really be done. The gals shared the cock orally with some dirty talk enhancing the moment, Shay getting some Gina titty as they all started to fuse together in the scene. Gina’s black dress came off and the ladies got into a 69 as Ben poked Shay, the gal still too passive a ride but always looking good. There was some rough stuff with the paddle to spice things up a bit) Gina wielding it this time, but the gals each got plenty of cock before he jerked off to their faces (where they kissed). It was a good scene that could have been a great scene, with a substantial amount of replay and stroke value.

Scene Seven: Jesse Jane, the lead contract hotty on the right hand side of the cover, finished out the movie with Nikki Benz and Tommy Gunn, as the seductive gal helped Tommy with his babysitter fantasy. Nikki had told him all about it and Jesse was all for playing the seductive tramp that would join them in bed; the ladies pawing him as they ripped off his (and their) clothing. Jesse was the energy that drove the scene and the role played up to her teasing nature really well. The ladies both shared his cock as they played with each other too, Jesse showing the world what an active vaginal ride is like as she bucked her hips and impaled herself really well. The PTM where Jesse went all out on his cock was also a fun trip but Nikki was no slouch either when she was sucking or fucking the dick. The disjointed editing and use of close ups so much toward the middle of the scene were again a bit bothersome but the overall enthusiasm and energy made it a fine scene to appreciate too. For me then, the chemistry that Jesse and Tommy shared was the highlight of the scene but Nikki’s role did add some added spice, even if she was not always fully utilized in her role. The gals then cumswapped the mouth pop with some post coital sucking, Tommy clearly depleted and coated in sweat as the gals walked away.

Summary: Babysitters HD DVD by director Robby D. to be released by Digital Playground at the end of the month was a lot of fun as a stroke flick. It replaced some of the more artistic visualizations of the director’s other works in favor of a straightforward approach he seemingly had left behind him years back, but showing enough creativity that it would not be fair to say it was shot on autopilot. The gals all looked extremely appealing and the two best scenes, by far, had either Jesse Jane or Teagan Presley as the focal point; each gal showing why they are so popular these days. The extras were better than the company usually provides, if still lighter than desired, but the movie itself seemed to show a more collaborative effort than the other titles released this year by the company; the biggest weakness for me being the missing contract gals, followed by the inconsistent heat in some scenes and a relative lack of extras. Still, Babysitters HD DVD was easily worth a rating of Recommended or more for all it did have going for it, a wealth of replay and strokability being demonstrated so readily; setting the bar for Digital Playground in the future should they follow up with a sequel called Cheerleaders, Clerks, or other profession ripe for the fantasy approach this one took. The additional cost of the HD version of the movie might be prohibitive at some retailers but if you want the very best version of this highly nominated title, you'll shell out the extra dough and enjoy your purchase for a long, hard time to come.