2014 has been a pretty weak year for horror films. Mainly, there have been a lot of sequels, a crapton of found footage films trying to revamp the genre, and some miscellaneous gems that really haven't shined bright enough to really be noticeable. The year is almost over, but the wait has been worth it with The Babadook.
The Babadook is about Amelia, a single mother, taking care of her only child Samuel. Samuel's father died in a car accident on the way to the hospital when Sam was born. Its almost seven years later and Amelia still has not moved on. She has the basement locked with her husband's things and has removed all traces of him from the house.
She is also not getting any sleep with her son who acts out in strange ways. He creates weapons, because he says there is a monster in the house and he has to make them so they don't die. In school, he brings those weapons and acts out. He is becoming an extremely unruly child, and Amelia can barely stand him. When at a birthday party, he pushes his cousin out of a treehouse and gives her a bloody nose, Amelia keeps him home for two weeks.
During that time that is when things start to unravel. Sam finds a children's pop-up book called The Babadook. Inside its depicts a creepy figure stalking a child that looks similar to Samuel. Amelia takes the book away and soon the book appears again. She rips it up and throws it in the trash. The book appears on her doorstep tape back together. This time there are more pages inside, showing Amelia, killing her dog, son, and then finally herself. She then burns the book. After the book is burned that is when stuff starts to happen. The Babadook appears to her and possesses her. Her son becomes the protagonist and tries to save himself from his mother and help her break free.
A lot of horror films either try to push the envelope or revamp a certain sub-genre, but what makes The Babadook different is that is doesn't try to do either of those things. It is just a damn good horror movie. The revealing of The Babadook is done is a perfect way. Its is rarely seen, but when it is, its movements are spectacularly creepy. The Babadook does what horror movies recently have forgotten to do which is have a character deal with a psychological problem. Horror is not made to just have hollow scares, horror should deal with mental anguish that can be tragically portrayed on screen. The Babadook has a rich female character and one of the best child actors that I have seen in awhile. See The Babadook, but you might only want to see it once. I give The Babadook 5 child-made weapons out of 5.
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