Films › Jennifer Kent

The Babadook (2014)

Film

DirectorJennifer Kent

Meta takes3

Figures

Locations

The suburban setting and house

Form & technique

The Babadook's voice → The Unseen Soundscape

Tropes

The Babadook monster → Maternal Abjection
The Babadook monster as a queer icon
The domestic home environment → The Uncanny
Amelia's transformation into a monstrous figure
The basement shrine to Oskar
Samuel's "problematic" behavior

Films most connected to The Babadook

Hereditary (2018) — via The Uncanny, Maternal Abjection
Let the Right One In (2008) — via The Uncanny, The Unseen Soundscape
A Quiet Place (2018) — via Maternal Abjection
Superbad (2007) — via Maternal Abjection
We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) — via Maternal Abjection
The Ring (2002) — via Maternal Abjection
Life Is Beautiful (?) — via The Unseen Soundscape
Iron Man (2008) — via The Unseen Soundscape