207 - The Babadook

    A widowed lady struggles with raising her son, and has to fight being possessed by a sinister spirit.
    The AV Club gave this a very good review, and it’s rare to see a horror movie get substantial critical praise.
    I’m impressed.  It’s very well-made.  The direction is clever, efficient, and evocative.  The script and performances are great, although it is an uncomfortable story.
    There’s one thing that usually drags horror movies down, and that’s predictability.  A twist is able to hold interest, but there are normally a set of rules that most movies are governed by; children in peril is usually a bad idea.  Certain acts take place off-camera.  Usually, it’s a matter of fulfilling the expectations created by the script.  Good movies usually are able to subvert some of these expectations.
    This is why there’s an unusual sequence, probably about halfway through, when the remainder of the story is spelled out for us.  It explicitly creates a new set of expectations, and messes with the audience by starting to fulfill those expectations, then derails them.  This is really smart.  It’s very effective, too.
    There’s an uncomfortable feel that dominates a lot of the first half, and it’s because we are exposed to erratic child behavior.  I know I don’t want kids, and the strangeness of this child’s behavior is a good explanation.  He seems pretty bright sometimes, and then his behavior switches drastically.  It does make us empathize with his mother.
    This is another thing - the movie does a great job of capturing being tired, and barely being able to hold on.
    I suppose my only criticism is that I don’t feel like I fully understand the ending.  I don’t think I understand the nature of the creature, what it wants, or why it remains.  I don’t know if I should be wondering about it, either.