"If it's in a word, or in a book... you can't get rid of The Babadook."
So, there's not much that I can talk about here without giving away the best moments of The Babadook, so I'm going to keep this short and sweet. I'd heard about The Babadook through word of mouth only. I researched only it's creation... not the plot. I'd read that it was a movie funded from a kickstarter campaign. It's a modest $30,000 budget and it comes from Australia. That's all I knew. Other than that, it was what I'd read about it-- that it was damn scary. The director of The Exorcist, William Friedkin, had watched it on an iPad and said it was one of the scariest movies he'd ever seen. And while it may not be the scariest movie EVER... it is still an effective horror film.
The best thing I can say about The Babadook is that it's unlike any horror movie to be released in the last five years. While there have been some classic, even well made horror films (like The Conjuring and Insidious) this is horror in a different vein. It doesn't have the jump-scares that seem to pervade horror movies these days. While you're in terrifying suspense waiting for something to pop out and make you jump out of your seat... you will be disappointed. What does happen is that terror you're experiencing ceases to leave your body. It never really lets up. While the story does take its time to build up the fable and the mystery of The Babadook, once it's established it grabs ahold of you and never lets up.
My suggestion is to not look any further into the plot of the movie. Don't watch the trailer, don't look into the synopsis. Just go into it blindly expecting a well crafted and perfectly paced terrifying movie that appeals to any horror fan. Yes, it was made for cheap, but that propels the terror in even more creative ways. It's a wonderful film that anyone should see if you're willing to give up a night's sleep.
A-
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