Horror in 2014 was much like horror in any recent year; dominated by 15-rated movies built on a chain of jump scares that craft apprehension in the moment, but lead to a totally empty experience. Thankfully, the exception to the rule doesn't just eschew conventions, but crafts something that's both uniquely terrifying and a solidly directed film. There's so much to love about The Babadook. Its cinematic influences (the George Méliès-esque TV sequence was funded through Kickstarter) are worn on its sleeve, but prove to be more stylistically important than just name-checking, while the titular monster is an unnerving creation; only briefly glimpsed in the flesh, the film instead has horrifying illustrations kick the viewers imagination into gear. But as scary as Mister Babadook may be, it's what roots him in everyday life that makes the film so resonant. Far from just another vengeful spirit menacing innocents in the real world, he's the physical embodiment of Amelia's depression. Just as "you can't get rid of the Babadook", she's never going to be able to escape the shadow of mental illness, with the loss of her husband an ever present issue. However, with support it can be controlled, just as with the Babadook in the ending. If anything, the Mister Babadook is another version of the metaphors (the black dog, the black cloud) used to explain depression, realised from the point of view of someone still very much in its midst.
