- The Babadook (2004) is currently available for FREE (with ads) on Tubi.com
- Rotten Tomato Score: 98%
- Australian director, Jennifer Kent’s debut film is widely considered to be one of the best horror features of the century thus far
- The film stars Essie Davis, Noah Wiseman, and the creepiest pop-up book ever created
- The Babadook leaves Tubi on October 8!
Jaws (1975) is the greatest monster movie in history because if you forget the shark, it’s still a brilliant movie about personal responsibility versus the politics of inconvenient truths. Night of the Living Dead (1968), an ultra-low-budget drive-in second feature, escaped the dustbin of cinematic history to become a classic, not just among horror cultists but to the elites of film criticism, because without the zombies it would still be a chilling examination of that to which humans can revert when in crisis. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) overcomes its many, many flaws to become a historically important film because behind Freddy’s bloody trail through the dreams of attractive teenagers is the real horror of children suffering for the secret sins of their parents.
In virtually all truly great horror films, the unlikely or supernatural threat represents something that is far scarier because it is far more real, so that when this fear is distilled into a shark or a monster, it is less an amplification than a mercy. The Babadook (2014) is one such truly great horror film. A mother (Essie Davis) is struggling to raise her psychologically troubled son (Noah Wiseman) whose father was killed the night he was born. The necessity of raising the child on a single income has forced her to give up a fledgling career as an illustrator of children’s books. The boy becomes obsessed with a monster called Mister Babadook. As the boy’s fearful and erratic behaviors drive his mother closer to the edge of insanity, the Babadook begins making its presence increasingly known, threatening to cause all manor of grim violence to happen.
It is a story of the Jungian shadow self (which is a great thing to say at pretentious parties). That is, it is a story about the thoughts and feelings so disgustingly abhorrent to us that we dissociate from them entirely. But they never go away. They follow us through life, waiting for their opportunity to take control of us when we’re weak. Specifically, this loving mother is coping with a subconscious hatred of her son, whose very existence robbed her of her dream life just as it was coming within her grasp.
The performances, cinematography, and script are all nearly flawless. The film also features a pop-up book that will scare the crap out of you.
The Babadook is available for free on Tubi until October 8. If you haven’t seen it, don’t miss it. But be forewarned, it isn’t an easy watch.