“There must be something ghostly in the air of Christmas — something about the close, muggy atmosphere that draws up the ghosts, like the dampness of the summer rains brings out the frogs and snails… For ghost stories to be told on any other evening than the evening of the twenty-fourth of December would be impossible in English society.”
— English writer Jerome K. Jerome, 1891

This December, Cinema Detroit will be participating in a very old tradition by showing the supernatural horror film The Babadook, starting Friday, December 12. While it might seem odd to combine spooky stories with a jovial, gift-giving holiday, telling ghost stories at Christmastime, or near the Winter Solstice, has been a European tradition for centuries. The most famous example of a Christmas ghost story is probably “A Christmas Carol,” but Charles Dickens’ classic was not the first or only such story. Indeed, Jerome K. Jerome wrote, “Whenever five or six English-speaking people meet round a fire on Christmas Eve, they start telling each other ghost stories. Nothing satisfies us on Christmas Eve but to hear each other tell authentic anecdotes about specters.” It’s really not surprising, for the Winter Solstice was long celebrated as the death and rebirth of the sun. What better time for a ghost story?

And we have a very good ghost story for you. In The Babadook, Amelia (Essie Davis) is trying her best to raise her “out of control” six-year-old son, Samuel (Noah Wiseman), and deal with the loss of her husband, who died the day Samuel was born. When a disturbing storybook, “The Babadook” (filled with Dr. Caligari-esque drawings) appears in the house, Samuel becomes convinced that the monster from the storybook is coming to kill them both. Samuel’s increasingly paranoid behavior slowly unhinges Amelia until she begins to wonder if Samuel is right about the Babadook.

The Babadook has gotten a lot of positive buzz. Writer/director Jennifer Kent recently won Best First Film from the New York Film Critics Circle. But filmmakers you’ve heard of like it too…the ones who make scary movies:

• Stephen King: “The Babadook: Deeply disturbing and highly recommended. You don’t watch it so much as experience it.”
• Guillermo del Toro: “A horrifying fable. Babadook fills me with hope as it announces the arrival of a powerful new voice in the genre.”
• Exorcist director William Friedkin: “An English ghost story is a terrific read…I’ve never seen a more terrifying film than THE BABADOOK. It will scare the hell out of you as it did me…Psycho, Alien, Diabolique , and now THE BABADOOK.”

This praise is on point. The Babadook breathes in new life into the horror genre by, ironically, looking backwards. Instead of attempting to create evermore gruesome and graphic death scenes, this movie, like the novels Frankenstein and Dracula, takes an unblinking look at some of our darkest fears. In this case, being a parent who is unable to protect their child. Or worse, being guilty of hurting our children by trying to protect them.

So, come out and help revive the old tradition of sharing a good old-fashioned ghost story in December.

Drama, Horror – NR – 93 min – Tickets $8 – Get tickets online
Fri, Dec 12: 9:15 p.m.
Sat, Dec 13: 9:15
Sun, Dec 14: 7:15
Mon, Dec 15: 9:15
Tues, Dec 16: 9:15
Wed, Dec 17: 9:45
Thurs, Dec 18: 9:15
Fri, Dec 19: 7:30, 9:30
Sat, Dec 20: 7:30, 9:30
Sun, Dec 21: 5:30, 7:30
Mon, Dec 22: 7:30, 9:30
Tues, Dec 23: 7:30, 9:30
Fri, Jan 2: 9:45 p.m.
Sat, Jan 3: 9:45
Sun, Jan 4: 7:45
Mon, Jan 5: 9:45
Tues, Jan 6: 9:45
Wed, Jan 7: 9:45
Thurs, Jan 8: 9:45