An Effective and Harrowing Australian Horror

Rating: 7/10 (15 November 2014)

The Babadook reaffirms a few beliefs of mine that I've seemed to have lost over the past few years, namely that horror is not a lost art form; film-makers are still capable of producing material and visual artistry which infuses fear into the heart of the viewer. It also reaffirms the notion that Australia is a country which is very much capable of providing strong and intelligent writers and directors to the mainstream horror community, with Jennifer Kent's debut picture proving to be one of a very harrowing nature, and one that shall undoubtedly stick with me long into the night ahead.
Headed by one of the most insanely confronting and intense performances of the year thanks to the exceptional Essie Davis, the entire film is incredibly stylish and well constructed on a technical level, as well as being efficiently paced and building a tension that does not let up until the final few minutes, those final few minutes being but slightly anticlimactic in comparison to the sensational build-up. The build-up itself is absolutely effective, producing scares all throughout before the inevitable final confrontation, though thanks to the aforementioned Davis' performance, we are able to conjure up enough confidence, alongside the main character Amelia, to confront and battle the monster at hand.
Though interestingly enough, what propels The Babadook into a category of its own is its refusal to fit into the role of a conventional and generic monster film. Kent tries desperately hard to craft a motion picture that spreads outside its initial genre, and instead expands to a number of different ideas and messages, namely that of grief. In fact, a good way to describe The Babadook is to consider it a confrontation with grief itself, and battling the things that continue to cause us pain and suffering long after the event that has caused such has passed; when we lose a loved one or a friend, we often internalize the damage caused to us. The Babadook represents one woman's attempts to battle such, and to stand forth and tackle the issue head on. In regards to the attempts to branch outside of the horror genre, Kent excels.
The cinematography and sound design are each worthy of acclaim, as well as the score; all of these are instrumental in building one of the best atmospheres seen or felt all year. The camera often reacts based on the monster's movements by stopping a close-up as a bump goes off in the background, and this immediately adds a different tension than what we're used to; there is a certain anticipation in this sense, as the camera then continues on in its movements alongside Amelia. The sound design and score are equally as harrowing, both increasing in pitch and volume as the monster becomes more and more prominent within the film. Child-like music, filled with light piano and other innocent sounds occur as The Babadook becomes the main feature of the film, so we're already highly on edge, but the sound design turns overtly creepy as the sounds and volumes begin to heavily contrast with each other; as the monster nears, heavy and shrill instrumentation plays out to warn us of the inevitable doom, only to be stopped as the protagonist focuses on a different piece of interest. All of these components help to dramatically further the film into a tension ridden class of its own.
Unfortunately, the film falls slightly within its first 15 minutes, the picture often over-emphasizing certain events within this brief portion of time, commonly to poor effect. The aforementioned ending is also anticlimactic, and the tension is not held as well as one would imagine during the finale of the film. Nevertheless, The Babadook is captivating horror, and a film which will undoubtedly stay with me for a good while. It contains brilliant performances from all involved, whether it be the sensational Essie Davis, the captivating Noah Wiseman or the creepy Benjamin Winspear, and it contains a great quantity of technical brilliance. Ultimately though, it transcends many other horror films by using the monster as a means for a higher message and battle, one that exists on the path to the subconscious of a highly tortured woman. It's a beautifully filmed movie, and one that shall not quickly be forgotten.
8.3/10
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