Review of The Babadook (2014) by Emmu& E — 23 May 2015

I pretty much loved this film. It's very creative, original, insane and downright freaky.

One thing you should know is that it is classified as a horror film (which it actually is to a large extent), but it goes much deeper than that. This film is a depiction of depression and grief. If you watch this expecting a straight up monster movie, you will be disappointed. The monster is there but it is not the main focus. It is about the relationship between the mother and her son and dealing with death and change.

One of the things that makes this film impressive is that it relies more on real horror elements rather than cheap jump scares. It expresses the fear of what you do not see and captures it perfectly. Another thing is the small amount of CGI and the extensive use of practical effects and make up that make the monster look real.

Also, this film is a directorial debut and it is from a female director. I think Jennifer Kent did an incredible job directing for the first time and I look forward to her future projects.

Overall, I was very impressed with this film and I highly recommend it to horror fans.

In the end, I'll say "The Babadook" proves that with good and original ideas, you can make a good horror movie without relying so much on cheap jump scares and CGI effects and also proves that you do not need a huge budget to make a great film.