A single mother and her child fall into a deep well of paranoia when an eerie children's book titled "Mister Babadook" manifests in their home.A single mother and her child fall into a deep well of paranoia when an eerie children's book titled "Mister Babadook" manifests in their home.A single mother and her child fall into a deep well of paranoia when an eerie children's book titled "Mister Babadook" manifests in their home.
- Awards
- 56 wins & 64 nominations
Jacquy Phillips
- Beverly
- (as Jacqy Phillips)
Tiffany Lyndall-Knight
- Supermarket Mum
- (as Tiffany Lyndall Knight)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDirector Jennifer Kent holds the rights to the film. When asked if there would be a sequel, she said, "I will never allow any sequel to be made, because it's not that kind of film. I don't care how much I'm offered, it's just not going to happen."
- Goofs(at around 18 mins) When calling out "legs 11" during the bingo game she holds a blue ball but a back shot shows her holding a white ball and in the next front shot she has the original blue ball again. As an extra the white ball is not 11 but 69 (which maybe a playful joke with the crew and cast)
- ConnectionsEdited from Mortal Kombat (1992)
Featured review
Better than most, but not quite up there with the best.
It's a rare thing when I give anything labeled horror more than a passing glance. The genre has become so completely oversaturated by teen slasher flicks, soulless gorefests and inferior remakes. Having said that I'd heard enough to convince me this may be one of the rare exceptions, unsurprisingly this is a low-key non-Hollywood affair.
Of course there have been enough horrors over the years for a pretty well defined list of tropes to be a known part of the movie-going consciousness. While The Babadook does deviate from the standard affair we all know and are mostly bored of, it does bring in a few of the more classic tropes, the problem child, the distraught mother and thankfully the illusive villain. Throw in a fair dose of questionable insanity and you have a recipe for a decent classic style horror.
In this respect it doesn't disappoint, of course it can't hold up to Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist or The Shining but it is certainly familiar of those and in no bad way. Paying tasteful homage to inspirations is acceptable if the movie can stand up on its own weight and in this it succeeds.
The actual premise itself seems fairly original, although not groundbreaking, the shocks come from the actions of the characters rather than any clichéd jump-scare tactics. As others have mentioned, the underlying metaphor is not too subtle but surely that's part of what adds to the tension.
There was some really good editing throughout, keeping the feel of a fast paced movie while not rushing the story. The kid actor in it does an excellent job of appearing genuinely disturbed but simultaneously good natured.
The Babadook may not be a groundbreaker, I don't expect it to redefine the genre and I doubt it will appeal to the younger horror demographic, but if like me you yearn for the spirit of the classics to resurface once in a while, this is a pretty good attempt.
And provided the promise of no sequels is kept, this is one that will hold up well for some time.
Of course there have been enough horrors over the years for a pretty well defined list of tropes to be a known part of the movie-going consciousness. While The Babadook does deviate from the standard affair we all know and are mostly bored of, it does bring in a few of the more classic tropes, the problem child, the distraught mother and thankfully the illusive villain. Throw in a fair dose of questionable insanity and you have a recipe for a decent classic style horror.
In this respect it doesn't disappoint, of course it can't hold up to Rosemary's Baby, The Exorcist or The Shining but it is certainly familiar of those and in no bad way. Paying tasteful homage to inspirations is acceptable if the movie can stand up on its own weight and in this it succeeds.
The actual premise itself seems fairly original, although not groundbreaking, the shocks come from the actions of the characters rather than any clichéd jump-scare tactics. As others have mentioned, the underlying metaphor is not too subtle but surely that's part of what adds to the tension.
There was some really good editing throughout, keeping the feel of a fast paced movie while not rushing the story. The kid actor in it does an excellent job of appearing genuinely disturbed but simultaneously good natured.
The Babadook may not be a groundbreaker, I don't expect it to redefine the genre and I doubt it will appeal to the younger horror demographic, but if like me you yearn for the spirit of the classics to resurface once in a while, this is a pretty good attempt.
And provided the promise of no sequels is kept, this is one that will hold up well for some time.
helpful•6639
- shaunmutantdog
- Jan 23, 2016
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Sách Ma
- Filming locations
- Adelaide, South Australia, Australia(locations: Marion, Glenside, Goodwood, St Peters and North Adelaide)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $2,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $964,413
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $30,007
- Nov 30, 2014
- Gross worldwide
- $10,493,882
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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