The Babadook
Director: Jennifer Kent Run Time: 93 min. Format: DCP Rating: NR Release Year: 2014
Starring: Essie Davis, Noah Wiseman, Hayley McElhinney, Daniel Henshall, Barbara West, Ben Winspear
While technically not based on a book, the horror of The Babadook emerges from the pages of a children’s book. One of the best horror films in recent years and now a symbol of the LGBTQ community, this film will have you chanting “Baba-dook-dook-DOOK!”
Six years after the violent death of her husband, Amelia is at a loss. Her son’s dreams are plagued by a monster he believes is coming to kill them both and when a disturbing storybook called ‘The Babadook’ turns up at their house, Samuel is convinced that the Babadook is the creature he’s been dreaming about. His hallucinations spiral out of control, he becomes more unpredictable and violent. Amelia, genuinely frightened by her son’s behavior, is forced to medicate him. But when Amelia begins to see glimpses of a sinister presence all around her, it slowly dawns on her that the thing Samuel has been warning her about may be real.