The Babadook and the haunted space between high and low genres in the Australian horror tradition. Issue 1 (2nd January 2017)
- Record Type:
- Journal Article
- Title:
- The Babadook and the haunted space between high and low genres in the Australian horror tradition. Issue 1 (2nd January 2017)
- Main Title:
- The Babadook and the haunted space between high and low genres in the Australian horror tradition
- Authors:
- Balanzategui, Jessica
- Abstract:
- ABSTRACT: The horror genre is a particularly fraught category in academic and mainstream critical discourse about Australian film genres. Australian horror films are often framed as either 'Australian Gothic' or 'Ozploitation, ' terms that prioritise issues of national identity, class and taste rather than genre. The oppositional relationship of these terms presents an obstacle to the widespread acceptance – both scholarly and popular – of local horror films. This is illuminated by a comparison of two recent Australian horror releases and their domestic receptions, Wolf Creek 2 (McLean, Greg. 2014. Wolf Creek 2 . Film. Adelaide: Duo Art Productions and Emu Creek Pictures) and The Babadook (Kent, Jennifer. 2014. The Babadook . Blu-Ray DVD. Melbourne: Umbrella Entertainment). Wolf Creek 2 was one of the most lucrative Australian films of 2014, however it was critically panned in large part due to its perceived commercialism and low-genre status. By contrast, The Babadook was the most critically praised Australian film of 2014, however the film received a limited domestic release. This paper explores how both The Babadook 's meagre domestic release and its near-universal critical praise can be related to its association with the high-art Australian Gothic tradition. Yet the film unsettles firmly entrenched art/genre, nationalism/commercialism dichotomies.
- Is Part Of:
- Studies in Australasian cinema. Volume 11:Issue 1(2017)
- Journal:
- Studies in Australasian cinema
- Issue:
- Volume 11:Issue 1(2017)
- Issue Display:
- Volume 11, Issue 1 (2017)
- Year:
- 2017
- Volume:
- 11
- Issue:
- 1
- Issue Sort Value:
- 2017-0011-0001-0000
- Page Start:
- 18
- Page End:
- 32
- Publication Date:
- 2017-01-02
- Subjects:
- Horror -- genre -- Australian Gothic -- Ozploitation -- The Babadook -- Wolf Creek 2 -- reception -- class -- taste -- national identity
Motion pictures -- Australasia -- Periodicals
Motion pictures -- Australia -- Periodicals
Motion pictures -- New Zealand -- Periodicals
Motion picture industry -- Australia -- Periodicals
Motion picture industry
Motion pictures
Australasia
Australia
New Zealand
Periodicals
791.43099 - Journal URLs:
- http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rsau20 ↗
http://openurl.ingenta.com/content?genre=journal&issn=1750-3175 ↗
http://www.tandfonline.com/ ↗ - DOI:
- 10.1080/17503175.2017.1308907 ↗
- Languages:
- English
- ISSNs:
- 1750-3183
- Deposit Type:
- Legaldeposit
- View Content:
- Available online (eLD content is only available in our Reading Rooms) ↗
- Physical Locations:
- British Library DSC - BLDSS-3PM
British Library HMNTS - ELD Digital store - Ingest File:
- 333.xml