LogFAQs > #965303439

7. The Babadook (167 points)

Why I Chose It: An effective portrait of motherhood and grief, The Babadook may not have been an instant success, but through word-of-mouth and critical positivity, the film certainly made a mark on the decade, particularly as "elevated horror" continued to evolve and progress through the years. Eventually, the eponymous monster took on a whole new life as a surprising LGBT icon thanks to a few simple viral jokes, snowballing into becoming a full blown symbol of Pride Month, ensuring the film's legacy and The Babadook's status as an enduring horror figure for decades to come.

Lightning Strikes: 1
PrinceKaro: 1
BetrayedTangy: 4
fortybelowsummer: 4
jcgamer107: 4
thesmark: 4
Johnbobb: 5
Snake: 6
rockus: 7
Plasmabeam: 13
Tom Nook: 19
red13n: 23
Inviso: 24
FFDragon: 25
Suprak: 27

Lightning Strikes - If its in a word or in a look, you cant get rid of the Babadook.

A masterful depiction of grief and the trials of motherhood disguised as a creature feature. This just such a great exploration of what its like to lose a partner while parenting, not just the effects of loss but also the resentment that builds up. Then, at the end there is an enormous sense of relief and catharsis as the protagonist is finally able to overcome her grief and protect her son, leading to that beautiful final scene of them both together. Of course, loss never truly leaves you, hence why we see the Babadook locked up in the basement at the end rather than destroyed entirely. You will never truly eradicate grief, but you can learn to live with it and stop it from eradicating you. All of these themes are beautifully intertwined with the narrative to make an unforgettable horror experience.

Of course, it helps that the more traditional horror elements are exceptionally well done. The storybook is absolutely chilling, especially later on as we see more of its disturbing contents. The Babadook itself is not just thematically effective, its also a creepy design that is well deployed in the film, its movements and appearance bring to mind stop-motion effects of older films but with a decidedly modern aesthetic. This makes it seem even more ethereal. Most of all, when the mother is possessed and attacking her son, its a truly harrowing scene. This is underlined by a relative lack of jump scares, this film could be seen as the first in the current wave of jump scare light horror, which was highly refreshing at the time.

This is all brought to life through a terrific performance by Essie Davis, who gives a lead horror movie turn for the ages. There are some criticisms of the child, but frankly his performance, and the way he is written, are very much intentional. He is supposed to be annoying at first to make you feel what the mother is going through. Indeed a lot of his mannerisms and his appearance are reflected in the Babadook itself. Then when he is in danger it shifts and you feel a real affection for him despite everything. Even something like that just strengthens the themes of the film and makes it even better. Overall this is an amazing horror film, an outstanding piece of cinema in its own right and the best horror movie of the 2010s.

5/5

Biggest scare: While the films one jump scare is a good one, the entire sequence where she goes after her son is horrible in the best way.

PrinceKaro - A young mother is concerned when her rather eccentric child begins building weapons to fight off the bogyman and generally begins acting irrational even for a six year old.
As the story goes on the perception of who is really the crazy one changes, and you realize that the boy is not just a little fucking brat, but rather the only person in the movie who understands what is really going on. It is brilliant, frankly.

But the brilliance doesnt stop there, because the titular Babadook is a bit more than your standard monster in the closet. It is actually a personification of the mental illness in the mother, and her psychological decline is perfectly mirrored with the Babadook's increasingly aggressive and brazen behavior. When you realize that the monster's attacks are the result of her mental state and not the other way around, it is a whole new way to look at the story.

This... this is what I was looking for. In a project that is mostly safe stories told from cookie cutter templates this film towers above the rest. It challenges the very concept of horror by showing that real fear doesnt come from goofily designed monsters. In the Babadook's own words: 'once you see what's underneath, you're going to wish you were dead'.

It is certainly something that is worth a look, the movie called the Babadook.

BetrayedTangy - Its kind of surprising how much The Babadook and It Follows have in common. They both tackle themes of mental health through the lore of their monsters and how the scares arent just here for our entertainment. Theyre actually a look into the souls of these characters and what theyre going through. The way Amelias denial of grief and stress manifests itself into this horror that slowly creeps out while shes lying-in bed just thinking is fucking brilliant and hits really close to home. What I think makes it even better is just how fucking scary Mister Babadook is. You would think a name that stupid would ruin the tone of the movie, but no its the opposite in fact. The way he says his own name in that guttural voice gives me actual chills and add on that cracked out Mr. Hyde look hes got going on and you have one of the scariest monsters put on screen.

Fortybelowsummer - This is one of my favorite horror movies, and to me its a classic. The age-old fear of a folkloric monster coming to get you is (almost) always a good base to build on and this one does it beautifully. It doesnt rely on jump scares or gore but just builds up a lot of tension and suspense with some great shots and editing. The fact that this was written and directed by a woman makes all the difference, in my opinion. The psychological struggles of a mother with a disturbed child are just as harrowing as the monster itself. Speaking of the monster itself well, he just looks all kinds of creepy and the sounds he makes are literally the scariest thing Ive ever heard. Also, more often than not I dont like kids in horror movies because they either cant act or are too cookie cutter, but the kid in this one is great. Yes, the character is an annoying little butthole that you kind of wish the Babadook would kill, but hes portrayed with real raw troubled emotion.

Jcgamer107 - Some of the best psychological domestic horror you will ever see, with an Oscar-worthy performance from Essie Davis (the boy crushes it too). Most horror movies trying to use mental trauma or grief as a metaphor wish they could pull it off even half as well (The Ritual comes close). I am a proud owner of an authentic Babadook pop-up book, and while it hasnt brought about any hauntings or possessions (yet), it is one of my favorite pieces of movie memorabilia that I have. Jennifer Kent eventually followed this up with a strong historical drama called The Nightingale, with a few horror elements sprinkled in.