The Babadook review
Hello everyone and welcome to my blog. For those who know me you know about my love for horror films so once a month I’m going to review and discuss a scary flick. We’ll look at the classics, some new films, and I want your suggestions on what I should review. I’ll do my best to cover all the different genres within the genre – slashers, ghosts, monsters, etc.
SPOILER ALERT! – These will be reviews so if you haven’t seen the movie you’ll want to watch it first before you read this. Let’s do this.
THE BABADOOK
Real life horror. That’s what’s actually scary and what horror films are about now. The Babadook is a 2014 Australian film from first time Director Jennifer Kent – based on her original short piece Monster. It wasn’t a huge success but when it hit Sundance it got its exposure. Very well received by critics and moviegoers alike, it tells the sad - for lack of a better word – story of widowed mother Amelia and her 6-year-old son Samuel. We see at the beginning of the film that Amelia’s husband was killed in a car accident on the way to the hospital to deliver Samuel. Samuel is a child who is hard to love although Amelia is trying the best she can. His behavior is atrocious in and out of school all the while insisting there is a monster after him – The Babadook. One night they read a book about the creature and it disturbs Amelia quite a bit so she destroys the book. Wouldn’t you know it shows up on her doorstep a few days later. This time with new drawings specifically targeted at her family. Don’t mess with the Boogeyman. Samuel creates weapons to defend him against said monster and brings one to school. The school staff speaks with Amelia about this and offers help, which she then declines saying she will place him in another school. Let’s not forget to note at this point that not only is Samuel having a tough time but also Amelia isn’t doing so hot either. She appears exhausted and at wits end with her son and the life they live. A very kind older neighbor is supportive and Amelia’s sister seems to care – maybe just being nice though. At a birthday party for Amelia’s niece, Samuel is provoked by the little girl about not having a father. He retaliates buy pushing her out of a tree house and breaking her nose. Big trouble now. Amelia takes Samuel to a doctor who suggests seeing a Psychiatrist but in the mean time she is able to squeeze some meds out of him. Things spiral downward terribly after this. The two shut themselves away in their house. Unable to sleep even though they have taken sedatives. No work, no school. We don’t know what day or week or month this is. You almost feel like you’re watching a film about a drug addict. During this time The Babadook does become real. Amelia begins to see it and lets it in to her. She becomes nasty towards Samuel – violent almost as they waste away in their house. There is a scene, which involves something bad happening to the family dog so we are going to skip over that. In the end she tries to kill her son but Samuel is able to show his love for his mother and Amelia is able to “vomit” the Babadook out of her. But as Samuel tells her you can’t ever get rid of it. The last scene shows what we certainly hope is a happier mother and son in the backyard. They have collected a bowl of worms that Amelia takes to the basement as an offering to the creature.
So is the Babadook a real monster? Could be. Really it’s a metaphor for everything in these two characters’ lives. Amelia was very much in love with her husband and the tragedy that occurs rocks her so deep she never really knows it. She is a very sad, very lonely character in this film and it’s shown very well to the viewer. As the film goes on we realize how much her loss has changed her. Meanwhile Samuel struggles to grow up with one parent who seemingly cannot do this by herself. Anxiety and fear of raising children. It’s something very real that affects a lot of people. Some people even regret having children. Imagine it without the person you loved by your side. Grief and loss can be overwhelming in life. At one point in the film Amelia’s sister mentions how it’s been six years since her husband died and she has to move on. The audience agrees but Amelia does not. She never mentions him and they never celebrate Samuel’s birthday the day of because it was the same day as the car accident. If you don’t face your pain or your fears they will never go away. That’s what the Babadook is. All of the agony, hate, and pain that gets inside you and will destroy you.
The Babadook is a very good film. While it’s psychological terror, the scares are good. I enjoyed the manifestation of the monster. Reminds me a little of images from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. We don’t always need a Jason Voorhees or Freddy Krueger to scare us. Senseless gore might get you in the theater but a great story leaves you thinking about it. That’s what a lot of great horror films have right now. The Witch and Hereditary come to mind (both of which I promise we’ll review) someone once told me there’s no need to watch scary movies because life is scary enough. Exactly.
Enjoy the trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5WQZzDRVtw