Customer Reviews

Baby Blues

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Baby Blues (Lars E. Jacobson and Amardeep Kaleka, 2008)

I've watched a lot of movies-- probably way too many-- over the past couple of weeks, from the sublime to the ridiculous, and all points in between. Baby Blues a little straight-to-video thriller that just recently hit the shelves, may be the best of them. This is the reason I watch so many awful horror films-- because every once in a while, I find a microbudget movie that impresses me more than almost anything I've seen from the major studios in the past five years. There was Shallow Ground. There was Deadbirds. Now there is Baby Blues.

Jimmy (The Bad News Bears remake's Ridge Canipe) is a rural fourteen-year-old with problems. He's not quite the town bully, but he's not a model kid, either. His dad (Anonymity's Joel Bryant) is a long-distance trucker who's around, it seems, just long enough to get his mom (I Know Who Killed Me's Colleen Porch) pregnant every once in a while; as we open, Jimmy is one of four kids, the youngest an infant, and mom is suffering some serious post-natal depression, which is augmented by a distressingly rapid slide into full-out madness. Dad has to make a run to Tallahassee, and not long after he gets out of sight, Mom snaps for good. This, as it turns out, is a very, very bad thing for her children. Jimmy finds himself in the uncomfortable position of having to protect his younger siblings from their mother's murderous wrath.

Make no mistake, this is an exceedingly dark movie, and one that will disturb and offend many viewers, but it gets its power by the fact that it's frighteningly well-acted and very well directed by first-timers Jacobson and Kaleka, who have obviously done their homework better than most of the first-time directors working within the system these days. This is just shy of being the perfect thriller; the opening scenes are a bit on the slow side, but once Jacobson and Kaleka (who also wrote the screenplay) crank up the tension, it never once lets go. The current theory that humorous interludes punctuating the horror is certainly workable in the right hands, but this is a movie that shows that unrelenting tension can work even better under the right circumstances. These are the right circumstances. Keeping in mind my warning above-- there are many who will find the basis of the story (which is, supposedly, based on a true incident) offensive to even think about, let alone see depicted on a screen-- I cannot recommend this movie highly enough. See this, and see it soon. **** ½

This was an amazing movie about a woman who has a complete mental breakdown after giving birth to her fourth child. The actress did an exceptional job with her role. She was very convincing! I just want to warn any potential viewers who want to watch this film. It is quite disturbing and if you have a low tolerance level for violence against children then please avoid this movie. I normally cannot stomach it myself but I found that I just could not turn the movie off because I wanted to see the ending. Personally, I think that this movie was excellent. I am probably emotionally scarred for life but it was worth it.

I was lucky enough to attend a private screening of this film (and am wondering why it didn't make it to the big screen in wide release) and was thoroughly creeped out. As far as indie horror films go, this one has a lot going for it: better-than-average acting, production, direction, and plot. There were some truly suspenseful scenes and several unexpected twists (though I don't know that "twist" is the appropriate word here). This is the type of movie that SHOULD have been playing at Horrorfest. Check it out for yourself!

Best movie since Inside this year. I have to say I was thuroughly impressed with this beauty. Having some tremendous allusions to such films as The Shining, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This will surprise even the most critical horror officionados. Thank you, Lars E. Jacobson & Amardeep Kaleka, for a wonderful film.

Stays with you long after viewing...Baby Blues is a remarkable microduget horror film that does not rely on over the top gore or supernatural events to drive it's message home. What makes this movie stand out is the overwhelmingly disturbing subject matter. The direction, acting and cinematography are top-notch and you get a genuine depiction of rural life turned upside down (and inside out). Not for everyone, but highly recommended if you are looking for a great horror flick that is outside of the norm.

Lars E. Jacobson wrote this movie and the box claims it is based on a true story. Which true story its based on or inspired by is not relevant. What is relevant is that Lars E. Jacobson understands what makes a movie horrifying. The plot to this movie is pretty straightforward. A woman, known only as Mom, convincingly portrayed by Colleen Porch, gives birth to her baby boy and begins a descent into madness and psychosis created by the all too common condition, post-partum depression. She begins to see things in drawings made by the children. She believes her husband, an over-the-road trucker who is gone frequently, is cheating on her. And of course, she begins to kill her children, one by one. Ok.. enough said about the plot because too much more would spoil this movie if you haven't seen it. And from what I can tell this film isn't trying to make any sort of social statement about post-partum depression. But, many of us know the story of Andrea Yates and mothers like her that simply snapped and killed all of their children in a post-partum depression induced psychosis. Thus this story is all too real and thus all too disturbing.

My wife and I cringed and turned out heads throughout this movie. But not because it is terribly gorey or bloody, we love gore and blood. We turned our heads, much as a young child covers his eyes when the monster comes up, to avoid the truly scary parts of this film -- the mother in her madness killing her children. My wife actually pulled our 3 year old son up on to her lap and held him as this woman brutally murdered these children. The film was simply brutal and horrifying. Rarely does a film kill young children, but this one does it, does it in a horrifying and realistic manner, and does it in front of other young children.

The boy who plays the 10 year old son, Jimmy, who does everything he can to protect his siblings from the mother's rage is the actor Ridge Canipe. He is phenomenal. I can't imagine this film won't have a lasting effect on his psyche. The Mom is so believably potrayed by Colleen Porch that I'm quite sure when I see her in other movies I'll immediately have flashbacks to the terror of this film. The cinematography is phenomenal. The directors (Lars Jacobson and Amadreep Kaleka) create many very scary scenes and shots throughout the film. For example, there is one scene where Jimmy is hiding in the chicken coop and his mother, on her knees, looks into the chicken coop through the small entrance used by the chickens, and the look on her face and its framing in the doorway was most reminiscent of the classic Jack shot from Kubrick's THE SHINING.

Although I strongly recommend everyone watch this movie, we will likely never watch this movie again. The movie was simply too psychologically disturbing for the loving parents of three children to endure once more. This horror is real. There is no slasher, there is no zombie, there is no vampire nor werewolf, that is as real as Mom is in BABY BLUES.

As I don't really have a regular rating system that I use to give a film 5 out of 5 stars or whatever, I'll just say whatever rating system you want to use I give it all of them .. 5/5 stars, 10/10 skulls, 5/5 Holy Craps, whatever the case may be. The movie has it all, a great story, great acting, great cinematography, a perfect balance of blood and gore in its kill scenes, and great directing.

THIS PRODUCT IS GREAT ITS SO AMAZING I REALLY LIKE THIS MOVIE IM VERY SATISFIED SURPRISED ME THIS MOVIE WAS VERY SAD... AND ENTERTAINING AT THE SAME TIME THIS LADY WAS CRAZY...SHE NEEDED SOME SERIOUS HELP BUT I ENJOY EVERY BIT OF IT!p

Even in horror cinema there has always been an underlying rule; CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF 15 SHALL NEVER BE KILLED! Of course a few films have been able to cross that boundary and become all the better for it(I'm talking about the raft scene from The Burning and the finale to Who Can Kill A Child as sparkling examples), but for the most part it just isn't done, and usually it isn't neccessary either... I mean, as long as someone's being slaughtered what do we horror junkies care the age, right? Well Baby Blues can not only be added to the short list of films that successfully cross that aforementioned line, but it spanks it raw and throws it in "time-out" for added measure! That statement right there should get my more depraved horror brethren salivating as well as provide fair warning to everyone else... this movie is NOT for the faint of heart. For the overly sensitive(and for those types I'll say it for you, "anyone who likes this movie is a certified sicko and should be ashamed of themselves"... there, now you don't have to leave that comment at the bottom of my review) or the type that can't seem to differentiate film from real life, you may want to steer clear... rent the incredibly safe(and dumb) Prom Night remake or any number of other tame Hollywood horror films currently littering your local rental joint instead(and watch out for that killer! Oh, *whew* it was just a cat... LOL!). So Baby Blues puts the all-too-real condition of postpartum depression(severe depression after delivery of a baby) to film, and in the process creates one of the best horror films of the year... and maybe most surprising of all, it's an American movie(I was begining to think only France was churning out movies like this anymore?)! Follow 10-year-old Jimmy, and his 3 younger siblings(one a newborn) as they flee from the most unexpected of evils... their own mother! The plot is set, however since this is a low-budget independent feature, acting and the directors ability become incredibly vital to whether or not the film will "sink or swim(much like the baby in this flick... wow, that's a tasteless joke even for my standards!)." Thankfully Baby Blues excels in both departments, particularly Colleen Porch as the mother who has lost sight of the boundaries between right and wrong, her perfomance is a revelation and should springboard her career onto bigger things(to which she'll probably do interviews stating how she "regrets making this film"), while the duo of directors come off far better then a couple of recent film grads on their debut project(which they are), creating some intense moments of cat-and-mouse and getting believable performances out of the children in the cast(which can't be easy). Now there are a few missteps that keep Baby Blues from reaching it's complete potential, a 71 minute runntime is one problem to be sure, especially when a lacking need in the film is for the mother to be more fleshed-out before losing her mind... the same is known about her at the start of the movie as in the end, she's looney! Another issue I have is that it doesn't take full advantage of it's subject matter, what starts off incredibly dark and uncomfortable takes a slight turn into campier material(when the film flips from the mother weeping and trying to drown her kids in the bathtub, to running them down with a corn thresher while spouting off about Hansel & Gretel deserving to be cooked alive?!), and a tacked on ending that, although provides a creepy closing shot, is about as believable as a razor-gloved killer who attacks you through dreams. All said though, Baby Blues should be on the top of most self-respecting horror fans list of movies to see in the near future(and by near future I mean right now!) and is not only one of the best of 2008, but of the new millenium so far... so put the kids(safely!) to bed and check this out!

Tough one to find and it really is a shocking and interesting story. Watch this one with your friends and fam and watch them squirm...

Really tense and if you can just look past the slightly lower quality to the film it really is one to add to the collection. A little far fetched of course but still based on a very real issue...

Is anything truly more horrifying than a mother with severe postpartum psychosis turning on her own kids? That is what makes this different from the usual slashers and monster features in the Horror movie section. Ridge Canipe is the oldest child, trying to save himself and his younger siblings, while their dad is away.

The ending has an even more frightening twist which I will not spoil.