Horror movies usually aren't my thing (says the guy who's favorite film is Alien). But honestly, I don't seek out scares too often, but when I hear a film is just plain good, I can't resist. So with reckless abandon I decided to watch The Babadook. I wouldn't really call this a horror film. It's more of a psychological drama with a horror framework. It's probably within the same genre of The Sixth Sense but a little scarier and more artsy. I fell in love with this film, as it takes the horror genre and uses it to tell a deep and enthralling tale of depression and grief. The film follows a woman who lost her husband in a car accident as they were on their way to give birth to their son. Now she lives alone with her 6-year old son, who is afraid of monsters in his room. Still grieving the loss of her husband, she reads her son bed time stories to get him to sleep, while loosing sleep herself. One night a book called Mister Babadook shows up on the self and the boy chooses it for the book of the night. This book tells about the babadook and how once you let him in, he won't leave until he kills you. Of course now her son is terrified and she puts the book out of reach. As the film goes on, her depression and grief continues and grows, and as this happens, the babadook enters the house and terrorizes her family. What I loved so much about this film is that it's not about a scary monster. It's about something much more terrifying, depression. The babadook is a clear metaphor for depression. And while the film might hand it to you on a silver platter, it's extremely clever and makes the horror of the film seem much more plausible and in that respect scarier in a way. The film as a whole really feels like a huge battle with depression. I've never been diagnosed with depression, and if you know me then you know I'm a super optimistic, fun loving, joyous person, but a few months ago I went through a short spout of depression. I didn't even want to call it that because I'm usually so positive but I couldn't shake it for a while. I didn't want to go to classes, I didn't want to do anything worth while, I didn't even want to hang out with friends because I didn't want to bother them with my sadness. So I would just go home, wallow in my sadness until I fell asleep. It wasn't healthy at all. I was just like the woman in this film, and it wasn't until I confronted it head on that I started to get better. I was just like "God, I can't do this anymore. Please help me." It was finally when I gave it up, called it what it was, gave it to God, that I started to move forward. It wasn't a magic switch however, it was still extremely hard to cope sometimes, but I got through it and I praise God for that. Maybe this is you right now. Maybe you're being terrorized by the babadook. It's not going to be as easy as saying a prayer and poof it's gone, but when you really evaluate your life, see the depression as what is, depression, and give God all your pain and sorrows, that's when the healing can start. But also, maybe your depression is deeper than that, and if you feel like it is, then I would encourage you to go and see a doctor. Sometimes medication is the best option. Depression isn't an easy fight, and I'm sure I don't even know the half of it, but I believe it is one that can be overcome by the blood of Jesus, even if just for a day. I encourage you to look into The Babadook. It's a wonderful look at the battle with depression and grief and it reminds me that depression can be overcome. Yes, some days are much harder than others, but Jesus is there to help us through our hard days and He will be there until the end of time. Amen. So my movie a day thing didn't pan out. Maybe I'll try again in July or August. Still saw a lot of great films this month though! This being one of them!
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Austin VincentJust a guy with a passion for film and Jesus who's trying to show that He can be found in our creative endeavors. Archives
November 2018
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