@Home releases for April 14

The Babadook raises goosebumps, Big Eyes surprises and Escobar blows eye candy but Woman In Black 2 proves dimmest DVD/VOD release of the week.

The Babadook (2014)

Starring: Essie Davis, Noah Wiseman, Daniel Henshall, Tim Purcell. Directed by: Jennifer Kent. Running time: 93 minutes.

Four stars out of five

One of the sharper arrows in the new quiver of shiver directors, Jennifer Kent makes an impressive debut with this perfectly phrased piece of psychological horror that pits a mother and son against a supernatural force. It begins with young Samuel (Noah Wiseman) suffering from night terrors. The kid is convinced there’s a monster under his bed, but every time his exhausted mother takes a peek under the mattress in the hopes of comforting him, she sees nothing. Yet, Samuel’s visions only grow worse, leaving poor Amelia (Essie Davis) emotionally frayed and completely sleep-deprived. Kent forces us to feel her exhaustion in every queasy close-up and every off-kilter camera angle. Even the daylight scenes prove scary because Amelia’s mind is so weary, we never feel anchored in any routine comfort –not even a simple exchange with other mothers and kids. Just as we’ve settled into the fatigue and futility, Kent injects us with a load of adrenaline: She brings in the monster, the Babadook, a dark force that brings its own pop-up book to its victims, and spins a story of a mother who kills everything she loves. Our brains beg us to resist the bogeyman, but in the mere act of acknowledgement, we’re putting out the welcome mat. This movie understands the constant battle of the brain, which is why it works so well. A compelling and frequently terrifying exploration of maternal guilt packaged as bump-in-the-night horror, The Babadook has already proven such a success, fans gobbled up all 6200 copies of a limited edition reproduction of the prop pop-up used in the movie.

Special features on the Blu-ray edition include: Limited-run “pop-up” packaging, deleted scenes, cast and crew interviews, behind the scenes footage, Jennifer Kent’s short film Monster, trailers.

– Katherine Monk

Big Eyes (2014)

Starring Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Madeleine Arthur. Directed by: Tim Burton. Running time: 105 minutes

Four stars out of five

After hitting a few foul balls, Tim Burton takes this true story of a kitsch icon and sends it over the spiked, Gothic, wrought iron fence. Amy Adams plays Margaret Keane, a woman who got married, had a kid and tried to live out the middle-American Dream in the 1950s. Like many women of the era, Margaret had no job skills and was entirely dependent on her husband, so when she bolts the abusive marriage in the opening scene with her daughter, we’re already awash in sympathy for the poor dear. But that’s just a small taste of the tidal wave of feeling Burton creates over the course of this sweetly creepy voyage. Using Amy Adams as the wide-eyed doe in the middle of the frame, Burton forces us to watch as her new husband Walter (Christoph Waltz) steamrolls her life and her career by taking credit for her unique paintings. Though reviled by respected critics of the day, Keane’s images of wide-eyed children miraculously became a pop art phenomenon – in large part thanks to Walter’s gift of gab. Burton creates ample chemistry and tension by keeping our two leads in the frame together, and he limits our distractions to ensure we feel suffocated, trapped and just a little on edge for the duration. In so many ways, it feels like a Victorian novel, with Adams playing the prototypical fallen woman and Waltz playing the arrogant, control freak spouse. But that’s why it works so well: Burton’s sensibilities are focused through an old brass lens; it’s why everyone looks a little tubercular. As a celebration of the artistic outsider, Big Eyes plays to every one of Burton’s strengths and thematic passions, but it’s also fun to watch because despite all the dark shades, we can feel Burton’s sharp, playful hands at work, cutting and trimming the shaggy topiary called the human condition.

Special features: The Making of Big Eyes, Q&A highlights.

– Katherine Monk

Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death (2014)

Starring: Helen McCrory, Jeremy Irvine, Phoebe Fox, Oaklee Pendergast. Directed by: Tom Harper. Running time: 98 minutes.

Two and a half stars out of five

Imagine if Masterpiece Theatre made hardcore horror and Jane Austen’s Mr. Darcy suffered from shell shock. You’d have a movie that looks a lot like Woman in Black 2, a classy and well-acted attempt at knicker-soiling cinema that just feels waterlogged from the beginning. Opening in the midst of the Blitz, Helen McCrory and Phoebe Fox play teachers shepherding a group of young schoolchildren to the countryside. They all think they’re going to be safer at Eel Marsh House, a remote mansion located in the middle of a swamp, but even the viewer knows better the minute we lay eyes on this bigger version of the Bates Motel. A malevolent spirit lives in the house and soon preys on one of the lonelier kids, forcing a showdown between the supernatural force and the sweet, stiff upper-lipped teachers. With a gloomy production design and the colour palette of an ashtray, director Tom Harper creates an effectively creepy mood, but he can’t deliver any definitive blows because the plot isn’t taut. Padded, predictable and just a little soggy, The Woman in Black 2 gets stuck in the genre bog.

Special features: Chilling Locations, Pulling Back the Veil, deleted scene, trailer.

– Katherine Monk

Escobar: Paradise Lost (2014)

Starring: Josh Hutcherson, Benicio Del Toro, Brady Corbet, Claudia Traisac. Directed by: Andrea Di Stefano. Running time: 120 minutes.

Three stars out of five

Proving he can do a lot more than play the perpetually perplexed Peeta in The Hunger Games franchise, Josh Hutcherson brings dimension to a cautionary tale inspired by real history in Escobar: Paradise Lost, the debut feature from veteran actor Andrea Di Stefano (Pi, Eat, Pray, Love). Opening with gorgeous shots of South American beaches, we see young Nick (Hutcherson) search for the ultimate surf spot in Colombia. He’s a Canadian, and entirely clueless about the emerging drug cartels taking over tiny villages and city councils. In fact, when Nick first meets Pablo Escobar (Benicio Del Toro) through a girl, he finds the man magnetic and quickly becomes part of his entourage. High on fame, power and the false feelings of family cultivated by the cunning criminal, Nick gets pulled into a swirling vortex of violence that culminates in a nail-biting chase sequence in the final act. Hutcherson’s emotional vulnerability makes us care, but Del Toro’s whole presence makes us scared: Finding a precarious balance between narcissistic sociopath and magnanimous family man, Del Toro bear dances through the performance, wheeling and dealing emotions like a drunken gambler. It feels over the top, but it fits. Escobar built his own zoo and became one of the richest criminals in the world servicing America’s cocaine habit, yet still saw himself as a saint. To his credit, Hutcherson holds his own against this emotive force, and together, the two create some of the best cat and mouse chemistry since Tom and Jerry.