The Babadook (2014) | Episode #56

In this episode, hosts Katherine Troyer and Anthony Tresca discuss the 2014 horror film The Babadook. 

Episode Highlights: We talk about the fact that while this is a masterful film, it is a film we really do not enjoy watching and may very well never watch again. We explore the uncomfortably intimate moments between mother and son, look at the concept of being a voyeur (get it...look at voyeuring?), and consider the role that the book within the film plays as both metaphor and microscope. Ultimately, although the film is painful for us to watch, we cannot help but admire what the film does for the genre at large and Australian horror more specifically.

A Dose of Scholarship: In this episode, we discuss Jessica Balanzategui's article "The Babadook and the Haunted Space Between High and Low Genres in the Australian Horror Tradition" and Shelley Buerger's article "The Beak That Grips: Maternal Indifference, Ambivalence and the Abject in The Babadook." Both articles can be found in the journal Studies in Australasian Cinema.

This podcast episode first aired on October 28, 2021.

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