Mubi Monday: Babyteeth (2019)

I have found myself saying this quite often lately, but here we have another movie that takes some very familiar elements and blends them in a way that allows them to feel relatively unique. Babyteeth has a married couple who are going through a rough patch, it has a young woman being quite captivated by the personality of someone who would be labelled as "from the wrong side of the tracks", and there's also a storyline about someone struggling to live a normal life while being affected by cancer.

Eliza Scanlen plays Milla Finlay, a schoolgirl unlikely to see full adulthood, thanks to the cancer attacking her body. Her parents (Anna, a musician, played by Essie Davis, and Henry, a psychiatrist, played by Ben Mendelsohn) are struggling to find the right balance between protecting their daughter and allowing her to enjoy all that she can in her life, which is why they end up being more patient and considerate when Milla brings home a new friend, an older drug dealer named Moses (Toby Wallace). A number of the main characters here use drugs for different reasons, but there might be a time when they can instead find their high/calibration in some other way. 

The first, and only (at this time), film directed by Shannon Murphy, working from a screenplay by Rita Kalnejas, adapting her own play, Babyteeth is one of those little films that seems unremarkable, and perhaps even a bit trite, until you start to be won over by the power of the many effective moments scattered throughout the runtime. On the one hand, I wish someone had pared this down by a good 10-20 minutes (it clocks in close to the 2-hour mark). On the other hand, there are no scenes I would necessarily vote to throw on the scrapheap. This is a story that is crafted well and lifted up by a great cast.

Davis and Mendelsohn are almost so appreciated nowadays that it seems redundant to praise their performances, but they absolutely make the most of material that gives them great individual moments, as well as some great moments together. There's no way to single one of them out, and they somehow manage to even take things up a notch in some powerful final scenes. Scanlen is perfect in her role, managing to convey her positivity and quirkiness without being stuck in a "manic pixie dream girl" rut. The constant presence of her cancer works against that, of course, but that shouldn't take away from how well she pitches her performance. Then we have Wallace, giving the kind of performance that makes me immediately want to check out more from his already-surprisingly-expansive filmography. Emily Barclay also does well to make a strong impression with her relatively small amount of screentime.

I enjoyed Babyteeth for every minute of the runtime. It sets everything up quickly enough, allowing viewers to spend most of their time watching the main characters connecting and interacting in both good and bad ways. The best thing about it is the way that it seems to hold back from judging people who find themselves in an unimaginably difficult situation, creating space and time for self-reflection as we ponder the beauty and ugliness of a universe that contains more wonders and delights than any of us could hope to see in a century, never mind whatever limited lifespan we're allotted by a cosmic roll of the dice.

9/10

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Bonus review: The Babadook (2014)

When I watched the trailer for The Babadook I was worried that I'd figured out what the whole film was about. In fact, I thought the trailer was just one big spoiler for those who could figure out one or two possible directions for the movie. I was slightly wrong, but only because writer-director Jennifer Kent never seems sure of what direction to take the movie in, at any point.

The film focuses on a struggling mother, Amelia (Essie Davis), and her difficult son, Samuel (Noah Wiseman). Amelia lost her husband, Samuel's father, in a car crash that occurred before Samuel was born, which has led to her grieving ever since. Samuel realises this, of course, and veers between unconditionally loving his mum and also mourning for a father that he never knew. So when the two start being spooked by the titular babadook, it doesn't take long for their fragile minds to look ready to crack wide open.

Lots and lots of people will line up to tell you that The Babadook is one of the best horror movies to be released in recent years. I'd certainly advise at least giving it a watch, because I seem to be in a minority with my dislike of the thing. For me, the main characters never felt even remotely likable (not always a necessity, but helpful when dealing with such dark material), the scares weren't all that scary, and the psychological layering just didn't do enough right to make up for so many wrongs.

Davis and Wiseman are both very good in their roles, with the latter particularly impressive, especially during the second half of the movie, but they're given very little to work with. Davis has to act like a woman getting down to her last frayed nerve, and she does, while Wiseman is either wandering around like a grimy orphan or being as aggravating as possible. Whatever explanation you go with, and the film indulges itself in allowing for pretty much any interpretation, the actions of the main characters just don't seem to make sense. Daniel Henshall has a few scenes, and is a welcome presence, and there are some other peripheral characters, but this is mainly about Amelia, Samuel and the babadook.

Kent shows that she's got talent, especially in the many scenes overtly showing the effects of deteriorating mental health, and it's always good to see another rare horror movie released that seems aimed squarely at adults, yet that also makes it more disappointing that the end result is such a squandered opportunity. The visuals are impressively dark and messy, as is the tone. Unfortunately, both start to work against one another, grinding up the thin characters in between them.

Worth your time? Yes it is. The modern masterpiece that many are calling it? Not for me, obviously, but you may find yourself agreeing with them. I'll just stand in a corner, glaring at people, muttering, and making rude hand gestures. As usual.

5/10

http://www.amazon.com/Babadook/dp/B00O20UHDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1415020282&sr=8-1&keywords=the+babadook