It's that time of year again. As the leaves turn and pumpkin spice flavors everything we eat and drink, Halloween is on the horizon. With Halloween comes horror movie season. I don't usually indulge in the horror genre, save for a few times during the fall each year. I'm more of a Hitchcock suspense fan than a Michael Meyers slasher fan, myself. It's not that I don't like horror movies ( I do), it is more that I need to be in the mood for them. Also, there haven't been many recent horror movies that have tickled my fancy. However, as I sit here shaking in my basement, I would be remiss to fail to mention the best horror movie I've seen in years(
And the critics agree),
The Babadook.
"Mommy, there's a monster in my closet." I think children have, in one form or another, been saying this to their parents since the beginning of time. This film (crafted wonderfully from first time director, Jennifer Kent) takes a simple premise and infuses it with originality and enough genuine scares to make the hairs stand up on your arms for days. A widow and her "troubled" son are haunted by a mysterious book that shows up in their home. It lays out, in rhymed verse detail, exactly how the boogie man (Mr. Babadook) will kill them. At first, the mother does not believe her son. She (like all parents) claim it's just a figment of her son's imagination. As time passes, she soon begins to realize that he is not seeing things and that Mr. Babadook is very much real. What follows is a series of shit your pants level scary sequences that any true fan of the horror genre must see to believe.
Definitely pick this movie up and give it a view this Halloween season. Bring a change of underwear as you'll probably need a dry pair after viewing this great film. Here's just a few reasons why I found it so enjoyable.
1) It's simple - The idea of the boogie man has been played out. From
the fun to the
stupid, to the
campy, the boogie man has been a fixture on film for as long as I can remember.
The Babadook seems fresh because it doesn't try to overdo it with cliches and been there done that scenes. Mr. Babadook is coming for you and there isn't anything you can do about it!
2) The sound design - From knocks, to screams, to scary voices, the sound design on this film is incredible. Every sound on this movie helps build the tension until you as a view can't take it anymore. I had to press pause a few times while viewing this film just to give me a chance to exhale.
3) The cast - Both Essie Davis and Noah Wiseman do a phenomal job in this movie. You can see their last nerves fraying as each scene passes. There are quite a few scenes with only screaming and tense breathing. Essie Davis builds tension through her eyes, which look like they haven't gotten any sleep in days, and, as an audience, you really feel her pain.
That's it for me on this one. What's your favorite scary movie?
