The Babadook: There's a monster in that kiddie book, and he's watching you

The reason why most horror movies are looked down upon (and rightly so) is that they have forgotten what ‘horror’ means. Most filmmakers think horror means shock, cheap thrills or gore. None of these actually put the horror in a horror movie. That comes from the unrelenting tension and the unease it creates in you, the viewer. Films like Sinister, The Orphanage and even The Woman in Black all walked the tricky tightrope between creepy and horrific. The new Australian movie The Babadook nails the combination to delightful perfection. A single mother (Esse Davis), who has lost her husband a few years ago, is struggling to raise her increasingly disturbed son, who is showing signs of being a sociopath. She lives in a large house with creaking floors, gloomy lights and dark corners. One day, she finds a children’s cutout book, called ‘The Babadook’. It has an eerie poem that warns the reader of a murderous Mr Babadook, creeping in at night when you sleep. So this is her life: no friends, barely any family, a problem child who is pushing her deep into depression even though he genuinely loves her, and a ghost who is trying to kill both of mother and son. If sleep was hard to come by before, it’s left the building now. [caption id=“attachment_1846469” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Courtesy: Facebook[/caption] No one expects good acting from horror films, but Esse Davis delivers an absolutely powerhouse performance. A sleep-deprived single mother is the biggest cliché that an actor can get, but Davis is impossible to dismiss. When her character veers between uneasiness, melancholy and dread, you do too. Directed with stunning precision and sensitivity by debutant Jennifer Kent, The Babadook is spine tingling, hair-raising, razor-sharp entertainment. She assisted Lars Von Trier previously, and clearly picked up from him the talent for portraying grief and terror. Kent nails the atmosphere and sound design to create constant tension in the film. You probably won’t see the ending coming and even if you, do you’re in luck – because Kent’s direction of familiar elements is stunning. When a character is cowering in bed, you know there’s something freaky above the sheets, but you can’t help squeal in fear because of the way Kent shoots the scene. When kids fall off a height, Kent doesn’t show them dropping on the ground. The scene cuts just before you can react, leaving your imagination to fill in the terrible blanks. The scenes where you don’t see The Babadook work better than the ones when you do. It’s similar to Mama, where the fear of the unknown recedes the moment the monster shows up. Perhaps the most fun is the book itself, which is featured in the movie. It’s beautifully designed, and really, really freaky. The Babadook is well aware of the cliches in its story, and it’s able to use them to its advantage by not succumbing to the temptation of delivering hollow thrills. This film feeds you the scares by making them feel completely probable. Mr Babadook becomes shudder-inducingly real himself – the way he moves and sounds is very satisfyingly alarming. The moment someone gets a phone call, a croaking voice says ‘Baaabaaa Dook Dook Dook’. It’s one of the many moments in this film when you’ll find yourself thinking that wearing an adult diaper might have been a good idea. Kent’s film has been garnering acclaim at festivals for all of this year. We’re lucky it’s got a commercial release in India so don’t miss this film. For all you know, if you make that mistake, you’ll hear three knocks on your bedroom door at night. Dook Dook Dook. Chances are, he’s watching you, reading this review, right behind you.