By Melissa Antoinette Garza
I had heard a lot about this movie as of late. Most horror fans love it. I’ve heard it called one of the scariest films in years and one not to watch alone. The trailer was certainly frightening and made the movie worth the Amazon rental, despite it being $6.99.
The plot follows Amelia (Essie Davis) a young struggling widow is at her wits end with her troubled six year old son Samuel (Noah Wiseman). Samuel’s father died while bringing Amelia to the hospital when she went into labor. Growing up without a father and with a distressed mother, weighs on the young boy. He has a fascination with monsters and uses makeshift weapons to defend against imaginary adversaries. Amelia is forced to take him out of school when the teacher and principal decide isolating him from other students is the best thing for him.
Later, her uptight sister Claire (Hayley McElhinney) is all judgement and zero understanding. Worse than Claire is her evil spawn daughter who is ungrateful and picks on Noah for not having a father. I actually cheered when this little girl was pushed out of a tree house and had her nose broken.
One night, Noah asks Amelia to read the book of his choosing. He has her read Mr. Babadook which is about a monster that shows up when you fear him and once he’s let in, he remains there forever.
This of course distresses Noah even more so Amelia gets rid of the book and tries to reassure him that the Babadook is not real. Soon,
Noah begins to see the monster and actually has a seizure. When she brings him to the doctor, he is prescribed tranquilzers to help him sleep.
Amelia finally gets a good night sleep only to come downstairs to a knock on her door. She answers but no one is there. When she closes it, the knock turns to a pounding on the door. She opens it only to find the book she destroyed put back together again. Only this time the words are different. It shows her being taken over by the monster, killing her dog, her son and then finally herself. Things get worse as the Babadook calls her and shows himself to her, eventually going inside of her.
There are many aspects to appreciate about this movie. For one, old footage from excellent horror productions is used to raise tension. Babadook is extremely cool looking and actually resembles Lon Cheney in the lost horror classic London After Midnight (1927).
Though, I didn’t think it was as scary as others, I did think it was a fantastic film. It was highly suspensful, superbly cast and had a solid story. There was very little CGI and mostly practical special effects were used.
I often dislike child actors. I’m not proud of that fact, they just irritate me. During the Full House craze when everyone loved the Olson twins, I despised them. I was on the bandwagon of hating Seven from Married with Children and worst of all I couldn’t watch any film with Mara Wilson in it without wanting to just punch her in the face. I think it’s a good thing I don’t have children. She just irritated me. It’s one of the biggest reasons I dislike Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) which many consider a classic. Hell, old Shirley Temple movies piss me off. Even when I was a kid, I hated kid actors.
Basically, it takes a lot for a child actor to not get under my skin. I’m never brought in by the cutesy catchphrases or lisps that make everyone else say “awwww….” It’s just typically too manufactured and forced. For every Bailey Madison (who I think is great) there are a hundred child actors like Sean Giambrone (The Goldbergs). I don’t even necessarily think it is the fault of the child actors, but rather the directors and what sells.
Thankfully, Noah Wiseman is amazing. He makes Samuel such a sympathetic character that it’s impossible not to root for him. Even when he’s throwing tantrums and doing the annoying kid routine that generally irritates me, he is able to convey a level of genuinity and sadness in the character which makes him endearing.
So for his performance along with all the aforementioned reasons, this is a great film for every horror fan.
Scared Stiff Rating: 8.5/10
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