The Babadook

I liked The Babadook. I must have forgotten that it was an Australian film as I saw the trailer ages ago and that in itself renewed my interest. I cast my mind back to seeing films like Mad Max and Malcolm in the Nineties and I recognized something of the personality of those films in this one.

One of the things I wondered about was the presentation of the outside world in the film. Authority figures – as is the case in UK soaps – are shown as very bland and almost existing on another plane, but most of all are quite useless. I considered whether a less black-and-white take on that aspect would have made it more realistic, and consequently more frightening, but I accept that the film was pitched as a modern fairytale. For example Amelia's 'specific' taste in TV viewing and the stop-motion nature of the manifestations both come from that point of departure. Even some of the early, unsettlingly noisy shots have a hyperreal quality that reminded me of Delicatessen; I liked the Blue Velvet homage at the end as well.

It's certainly scary enough and I found it a much more satisfying experience than The Witch. The most unpleasant moment for me was the shot of Amelia making a hideous face through a window, and it was so effective to make such a nice woman gradually turn into a beast. I particularly like the scene where, ape-like, she hangs off a door frame, ferociously kicking to get in. I liked Essie Davis a lot, in both guises, and she's very strong on screen in a way that reminds me a lot of Cate Blanchett. I was quite pleased to have worked out what was going on, at least up to a point, at key stages in the film, and the concept is very impressive. There are nevertheless quite traditional and recognisable qualities at work but they don't really feel tired – the manner of possession for example made me recall the brilliant Entity; and, the emotional side of the film, The Eclipse, which I also thoroughly enjoyed. Needless to say The Exorcist was also in my head a few times.

I'm looking forward to seeing The Babadook a second time but I probably won't look at it for a while.

I liked The Babadook. I must have forgotten that it was an Australian film as I saw the trailer ages ago and that in itself renewed my interest. I cast my mind back to seeing films like Mad Max and Malcolm in the Nineties and I recognized something of the personality of those films in this one.

One of the things I wondered about was the presentation of the outside world in the film. Authority figures – as is the case in UK soaps – are shown as very bland and almost existing on another plane, but most of all are quite useless. I considered whether a less black-and-white take on that aspect would have made it more realistic, and consequently more frightening, but I accept that the film was pitched as a modern fairytale. For example Amelia's 'specific' taste in TV viewing and the stop-motion nature of the manifestations both come from that point of departure. Even some of the early, unsettlingly noisy shots have a hyperreal quality that reminded me of Delicatessen; I liked the Blue Velvet homage at the end as well.

It's certainly scary enough and I found it a much more satisfying experience than The Witch. The most unpleasant moment for me was the shot of Amelia making a hideous face through a window, and it was so effective to make such a nice woman gradually turn into a beast. I particularly like the scene where, ape-like, she hangs off a door frame, ferociously kicking to get in. I liked Essie Davis a lot, in both guises, and she's very strong on screen in a way that reminds me a lot of Cate Blanchett. I was quite pleased to have worked out what was going on, at least up to a point, at key stages in the film, and the concept is very impressive. There are nevertheless quite traditional and recognisable qualities at work but they don't really feel tired – the manner of possession for example made me recall the brilliant Entity; and, the emotional side of the film, The Eclipse, which I also thoroughly enjoyed. Needless to say The Exorcist was also in my head a few times.

I'm looking forward to seeing The Babadook a second time but I probably won't look at it for a while.