Thursday 13 October 2016

Halloweenie Review: The Babadook (2014)

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There are several coping mechanisms that I use when watching a horror movie. My favourite is keeping a cardigan nearby, and watching the tense scenes through it. Cardigans are the perfect thickness for obscuring most of the scariness without blocking the screen entirely. Hoodies are no good, as I sadly learnt whilst watching It Follows, they’re just too thick. They’re perfect for weepy movies though, I just pull up the hood and hide myself away. My latest trick for horrors that I can find on VOD however is watching on my tablet with headphones. Super easy to look away from and tear out a headphone when the creepy music is just too much.

The Babadook (2014) is a wonderfully creepy movie. Amelia (Essie Davis) is still struggling with the tragic death of her husband 7 years ago. Her son Samuel (Noah Wiseman) is having problems of his own. He’s plagued by a monster that not only keeps him awake at night, but has led to him becoming quite a violent and disturbed young boy. Just when things seem like they can’t get worse for this Mother and Son, they read a book called Mister Babadook, turning their lives into a living nightmare.

I got pulled into a false sense of security with this movie’s first half, which does a brilliant job at building the two leading characters and explores their backstories and the reasons why they are who they are. It honestly makes a great movie of it’s own right, without the horror part that follows. It was easy to take an instant disliking to Samuel, he seemed to be the stereotypical ‘weird kid’ you expect from a horror movie, but my heart ached for him and Amelia after a while. It was such a sad situation.

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Sadly, the movie moves on from their tragedy and cranks up the scare factor once the ‘Mister Babadook’ book is found. The book itself is written in that rhyming couplet style that many children’s books are written, and starts off fairly innocent. You know, until the part about wishing you were dead. That was a bit off. Amelia does the WRONG thing by tearing the book up that night (personally I would have burnt it, and my entire house down) which I can only assume just angered the Babadook.

I can’t even tell you through words just how terrifying the sound the Babadook makes. Even through headphones rather than quality, cinema speakers, it’s chilling, and I’ve got goosebumps just thinking about it. Move over Godzilla, you ain't got nothing on this hat-wearing monster.

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What I liked the most was that we didn’t actually see the Babadook that often. We just didn’t need to, the atmosphere and the music is enough, and it makes those scenes with him in that bit more powerful. Admittedly, I was hiding for a lot of the final chunk of the movie, whispering (spoiler alert) ‘please not the dog’ over and over again, but it was a justified kind of scaredness, I wasn’t just hiding from endless jump scares.

I’m so glad I braved this one, and ooh boy, that ending! I won’t spoil it for anyone, but it was definitely not what I was expecting.

17 comments:

  1. I watched this one some time ago and found it absolutely brilliant. It's not only a good horror movie in classic terms, but I was also astonished how smart it actually. Especially in the retrospective I realized some stuff!

    Here's my review :-) http://wp.me/p2DYTl-pI

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    1. Oh definitely! You know you've just seen a great movie when you feel compelled to spend the next hour reading more into it :) Going to check out your review now!
      - Allie

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  2. I liked this movie, especially how it was more about mental illness then it was about supernatural beings in your house.

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    1. It took me a few days thinking and overthinking about the movie before I even thought about that, it was so clever!
      - Allie

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  3. This movie just sounds creepy as hell. Creepy things making creepy noises is my biggest fear! Also great that you don't see the Babadook too often, there's nothing worse than a monster/baddie/entity with too much screentime. I'm gonna check this one out when I'm feeling brave!

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    1. Oooh do it! You only hear the Babadook maybe 3 times, 4 at most, but it's so creepy. I'm such a wuss!
      - Allie

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  4. Oooh this is a horror movie I'm still curious to see! Ha..ha.. you have your cardigan but for me I have this thick velour blanket in my entertainment room couch that's perfect for shielding scary scenes! I have to brace myself watching this, but sounds like it'll be a worthwhile experience :)

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    1. Oh that sounds so warm and cosy :)
      If you can brave it, I highly recommend this one!
      - Allie

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  5. Excellent movie and there are some really good theories floating online, it's quite an ambiguous story. And yes the dog! I'm always so horrified - that is the worst horror trope there is - that the family dog always gets hurt

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    1. You just can't get attached to any dog that's in a horror movie :( The Amityville Horror remake springs to mind!
      I'm now going to spend the rest of the day reading Babadook theories, but I guess there are worse ways to pass the time!
      - Allie

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  6. It's really good, right? I was so surprised by it. I just love that it has so much more going on under its surface-level horror. In fact that is probably what makes it the most horrifying. Really anxious to see it again.

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    1. Absolutely! This might just be the kind of movie I bring back out every October. I reckon it's one of those that brings new ideas every time you watch it.
      - Allie

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  7. Yay!!! So glad you faced up to this one. It is such a wonderful little horror film. And that ending is flat out amazing. Great review!

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    1. I think I may have peaked too soon with this and It Follows. I need to find something else great before I end up watching terrible horrors that I can just laugh at!
      - Allie

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  8. Great review, there! I was thinking this movie is about acceptance. The monster is an allegory of the 'hard life' the mother needs to atone, but she refuses to bear it. And the ending makes it clearer.
    What do you think about the ending?

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    1. That's a brilliant theory! I have to admit, I took it at face value at first, but the more I thought and the more I read, I realised the possibilities. I love the themes of depression, if love can be the right word for it...
      - Allie

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  9. Yes!! Some love for an Aussie film! :P

    I still don't know about that ending. I need to watch this again, azs that last act was MENTAL!! I think the mother was scarier than The Babadook!!

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