The Babadook Comes Knocking

The best horror films are all about metaphor and subtext. They aren't just trying to scare us, but have something to say about what it is that scares us.                                                                                                                                                             Get ready to meet writer-director Jennifer Kent. With The Babadook, she's crafted one of freshest, most timeless and disturbing horror films in the last couple of decades.                                                                                                                 Amelia (Essie Davis) is a widow trying to cope with raising her seven-year-old son Samuel (Noah Wiseman) by herself, always feeling inadequate or judged by other moms, afraid that she's unable to communicate with Samuel or help him dispel his phobia of a boogeyman creature that he's convinced lives in their house - The Babadook - from a story he discovered in a popup book. As Samuel grows more fearful, his behavior grows more extreme, even devising a series of weapons to protect himself and his mom from this fear in the darkness.

Kent is dealing with every parent's most primal fears of feeling unable to protect their children from what's out there, while creating a story that resonates with the suppressed parental dreads of autism, depression, fear that the world sees your child as different or broken, sleep deprivation, mental illness and emotional isolation. I can't decide if single parents should immediately seek this film out or avoid it like the plague.

The Babadook was made in Australia on a very low budget. The cinematography is phenomenal, with a moody, near black and white vibe that echoes dreamlike near realities from David Lynch to F.W. Murnau.

Jennifer Kent references horror tropes but never resorts to cheap shocks or cliche. There's a timeless, subconscious terror to her story that comes from a place of deep compassion for her characters and their struggles. To what degree the dread of The Babadook is real  or imagined is something Kent leaves in the shadows, but she's a striking new filmmaker with a voice that's got to be heard. It's not just the best horror film in ages, it's one of the best movies of the year. Don't miss it. 

In addition to limited theatrical release, The Babdook is also available for home video on Amazon Instant Video and cable OnDemand.