The Babadook (2014)

It's not a typical horror movie and that's also what makes it great. There are some bad reviews here but what I always do is check out the reviewers... I pick one that said the film was horrible and one that said it was great. A quick check on their profile and looking at their other reviews helps give me some perspective on their taste. For example one of the bad reviewers on here enjoyed the movie Jessabelle. While not an awful movie. It's also a movie for dumb people. Simple and easy to understand and nothing really spectacular goes on. The acting is mediocre and the script predictable. It's like a high school film. She also gave Night at the Museum 10 stars. So you can tell she is probably a teenager. I do that with just about every movie I watch on Netflix. To help me not waste time. It's amazing because there are a ton of great movies that get average ratings here, and a ton of average movies that get really high ratings here. Like The Conjuring. That got very high ratings and it just wasn't that great. It was good but not a stand out. America has really really bad taste in film. Actually, in just about every genre of art. We have zero culture , and the rest of the world considers us it's blonde cousin for a reason. We are the dumbest nation in the world. But if a movie gets really high reviews here and those reviews are overwhelmingly good, you can bet it's a pretty good movie. At the least well made and entertaining. This movie stands out for a few reasons and here are the reasons it stood out for me . Because it is totally original. And it's so candid about parenthood.. Any parent can relate to this film, esp if they have kids with "issues" or that have been through a lot in their small lives. It captured perfectly the slightly troubled child. I too think that it showed what I know I've experienced as a single mom with two kids .. That need for space that you just don't get. The need for adult interaction that you also don't get if you don't allow yourself it. So there is a deep well here for character study and relationship dynamics.. I mean deep as in horror movies. So, on top of that the movie is freaky and strange and frightening . This is by far way more of a mind f*** than any Rob Zombie movie for me. A lot of people Really appreciate that kind of movie , like The Hills Have Eyes. They want the most disturbing , cruel , disgusting things to watch. I'm not them . I have to believe a movie for it to be put in the good box. Although those movies are entertainment , they also are like a prank in a way . Like all the directors got together for a game of Spin the Bottle and the ones that made like the Texas Chainsaw films asked for Dare. This movie isn't going to appeal to kids. , isn't going to appeal to the Hills Have Eyes fan club, the people that don't like to expend any energy on thinking , or just in general have short and shallow attention spans that they really a can't focus on anything that isn't doing something horrible is happening.

Fmovies: It's a rare thing when I give anything labeled horror more than a passing glance. The genre has become so completely oversaturated by teen slasher flicks, soulless gorefests and inferior remakes. Having said that I'd heard enough to convince me this may be one of the rare exceptions, unsurprisingly this is a low-key non-Hollywood affair.

Of course there have been enough horrors over the years for a pretty well defined list of tropes to be a known part of the movie-going consciousness. While The Babadook does deviate from the standard affair we all know and are mostly bored of, it does bring in a few of the more classic tropes, the problem child, the distraught mother and thankfully the illusive villain. Throw in a fair dose of questionable insanity and you have a recipe for a decent classic style horror.

In this respect it doesn't disappoint, of course it can't hold up to Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist or The Shining but it is certainly familiar of those and in no bad way. Paying tasteful homage to inspirations is acceptable if the movie can stand up on its own weight and in this it succeeds.

The actual premise itself seems fairly original, although not groundbreaking, the shocks come from the actions of the characters rather than any clichéd jump-scare tactics. As others have mentioned, the underlying metaphor is not too subtle but surely that's part of what adds to the tension.

There was some really good editing throughout, keeping the feel of a fast paced movie while not rushing the story. The kid actor in it does an excellent job of appearing genuinely disturbed but simultaneously good natured.

The Babadook may not be a groundbreaker, I don't expect it to redefine the genre and I doubt it will appeal to the younger horror demographic, but if like me you yearn for the spirit of the classics to resurface once in a while, this is a pretty good attempt.

And provided the promise of no sequels is kept, this is one that will hold up well for some time.

I really enjoyed this film, its dark and unnerving without resorting to loud bangs or "found footage" style filming to get its scares.

Low budget and well shot, the film leans on the power of suggestion and tone to create a film which has a sense of unease throughout, tonally like the Exorcist, where there is this underlying feeling of dread and helplessness

The scares are not spoon fed, so this won't be for everyone, if your brand of horror is purely just modern films like Insidious or the recent Annabelle - then this might not be for you.

One of my favourite films of the year.

The Babadook fmovies. I saw this film on Copenhagen pix yesterday. The movie was compared to "the orphanage", and even though i liked that film i was a bit in doubt if i should go for it because i was not in the mood for a heavy emotional, mother and son horror-drama. But its everything but. Sure its horror, sure its drama, but the tone is very different from the Spanish movies around same kind of subject which are very serious.This is way more fresh, snappy and sometimes funny actually, without being lame. But also creepy, its the change of moods thats freaky. Nice style. The actors are supreme and the whole socialrrealistic scene around it is far out and overexagerated, which the horror part also is. But it works, because its a metaphorical movie describing a feeling. Its highly original. If you expect the same supernatural children horror movie As you have seen before, think twice. This is new, this is cool, different. The best movie i have seen in a year. Serious. It never gets melodramatic, its fast, entertaining and a bit psychedelic. Very refreshing. And smart, clever. It has it all. I am a big fan.

You've heard of feel-good films, well this is not one. It's creepy and disturbing pretty well all the way, a good old horror fantasy with a nod to the psychological canniness of Nightmare on Elm Street but much more economical in terms of special effects, casting and I would imagine budget. It nevertheless maintains tension and atmosphere along with some high-flying dramatic sequences from the actors which bear comparison with The Exorcist. The plot also connects nicely with the psychological and existential conflicts facing a single mother whose son's birth coincided with the tragic death of her husband, and the whole nasty Babadook phenomenon, and its unresolved outcome, can certainly be read as an allegory of this traumatic event. Maybe it's over-reading to say the film also contains a Nietszchian lesson about the importance of embracing every aspect of one's life and history, no matter how horrific - but it works for me. The acting is amazingly good from the two leads, although the supporting characters are a bit stereotyped, a directing decision presumably. Sets and locations are charged with a bleak gloom, and the colour accordingly verges on monochrome. Love the specially made children's book, and Mr Babadook's physical character, as well as the wonderfully curated vintage movie footage appearing throughout on the TV screen. And a special word for the very fine intricately crafted sound design.

At first glance, The Babadook may sound like a tale that warns people to not let children put creepy stories up into their heads. It may also be like one of those old horror movies with children being influenced by the ghost. The titular monster seems to have the potential of being a silly urban legend, such as Slender Man or the Hash Slinging Slasher (sorry about that), that is destined to be flooded with fan fiction, or simply just another horror movie icon, but the film surprisingly has a different aim than just scaring the audience. It might as well be a character study of a mother having a hard time moving on after the tragedy she's been through losing her husband and trying to raise her only son. The real horror doesn't come out that quick, but there is already a pretty compelling movie when it come to its characters. The tension is just the prize for being intrigued by the story's core. One thing people must know about the film is it's not generally about The Babadook monster. In spite that the antagonist has an ambitiously great campy design and his story is told well by a twisted storybook with wondrously illustrated diorama, the movie is still laden on the more human element of the tale, which is the struggle of a mother who is unable to live normally. The pacing of her life may move too fast for the film, but the sadness and deprivation beneath those regular troubling days are totally manifested even without extending any of its breathing. The plot mostly concerns Amelia finding a way to overcome Samuel's behavioral issues and her memories with the accident than dealing with the whole supernatural threat, for sure it is trying to build some slow burn, but even without that horror movie sense, it still feels like they're being tormented by life. It deliberately takes their personal grief seriously, making sure that they actually aren't insane, and nobody else could ever understand what they're going through. This is pretty much the most compelling view of the film, which makes them reasonably trapped into their own nightmares. Mister Babadook only becomes the boiling point of the ordeal. And when it hits to the part of the real scares, it sells well whenever the monster attacks. Instead of loud lazy jump scares, it rather spreads away signs of his presence and its effects to the family. His appearance has more terror if he's lurking in the shadows. It also has a nice use of practical effects to endure its very effective creeps. The performances of the two leads are outstanding for bringing the real heart of the picture. Essie Davis embraces the character, making her fear, depression, and shifting madness all visibly genuine. Same to the young Noah Wiseman who as well gives his character's actions some sense of anxiety. Some horror fans might get slightly disappointed for not giving The Babadook monster enough of the characterization he deserves. The other story is a lot more interesting to follow than his diorama tricks, and that is why I keep stating that the the movie is best viewed as a gloomy fairytale about a mother and a son fighting to keep a hold of themselves and promise to protect each other from the odds, even if the promise doesn't always apply, than just another horror movie being shown in our theaters. While it still has the right amount of admirably campy scares, the film often explores to the larger and much affecting side of the story, and that sure offers beyond than what you expect to this stale genre.