Much to JHarker’s dismay, everybody here has had a pop at this film. And I’m sorry, but I didn’t care a lot for it either.
This may be the most frustrating film I’ve seen in a long time as I can see the brilliance within. But, it’s drowned out by a load of art-school bollocks (ironic, considering director Jennifer Kent refused to go to film school), and the most irritating child I have seen in a long time. I get what the film is doing and that the Babadook is a metaphor for the mother’s growing resentment of her child. Yet, this nonsense could have been averted if she would just tell her child to shut the #$*! up.
It probably doesn’t help that I did not find the Babadook itself scary. Kent does an admirable job at building suspense but I ended up giggling when it showed its face. I feel that the film may have been better if the Bababook was only hinted at in the book, instead of manifesting itself physically.
There is something amazing here but it is definitely the work of a first time director that feel that they need to show off (I can easily imagine Kent’s mentor, Lars von Trier, pausing the film every two minutes and asking “what’s this shite about?”). But, I look forward to seeing Kent’s next film. Well, I thought I was looking forward to that but I looked up
The Babadook and who Jennifer Kent was.
Critics masturbated themselves over who could deliver the most praise. It wasn’t like those other horror films that relied on gore or scares (apparently, they never saw any Japanese or Korean horror), it was about a lone woman struggling (um, isn’t there a lot of horror films with that as a theme), the perils of raising a child (you’d swear Wes Craven never made
New Nightmare), and that it was a woman that directed this horror film (I suppose the Soska sisters, Claire Denis and Kathryn Bigelow aren’t
that famous). And Kent seems quite happy resting on her laurels, judging by interviews.
So, I don’t know. Kent is quite talented but I believe she can do much better. Yet, everyone has told her she’s magnificent and she seems to agree that she doesn’t need to do better. I hope she surprises me but I’m getting the horrible feeling that she won’t.
Thanks, critics!
