The Horror Show
The Lullaby
by Darrell Roodt
From Rosemary's Baby to It's Alive, babies have been an unusual staple of horror for years; they've been both victims and monsters. Babies speak to the paternal instincts in most people, so they're perfect for pulling fear from deep within.
The Lullaby is a South African film about Chloe, a 19-year-old single mom that is returning to stay with her mother in her little home town called Eden Rock. Chloe isn't taking to motherhood well. Her baby cries constantly, she's having a hard time breast feeding, her mother is very overbearing, and she keeps seeing a woman in black from 1901 that's trying to kill her baby. That's the story. It's up to you to figure out if she's suffering from hallucinations caused by the postpartum depression or if she’s being haunted by the sins of the town.
This movie is visually stunning, the way it's shot is so gorgeous. You get more from the visuals than you do the story. I love the washed-out tones as they made certain things pop like Chloe's suitcase when she runs away, or whenever blood is shown. It makes you uncomfortable.
The most interesting thing about this film is its original title, Siembamba. Siembamba is a South African lullaby sung usually in Afrikaans, but was translated for the movie. It goes like this:
Siembamba, mommy's baby
Siembamba, mommy's baby
Twist his neck and hit him on his head
Throw him in the ditch and he'll be dead.
The song is about a snake. In this film it takes on a darker tone when you find out about the town's past. It was a brilliant move to use something that everyone knows and use it in a way that flips its meaning. This is very clever writing.
The only problem I had with The Lullaby is the same one I have with most modern horror movies. Loud noises do not equal scary. Scary is scary. You have some disturbing visuals in this film, we don't need a sting behind it. It's the same gripe that keeps popping up time after time and I really wish filmmakers would drop this trope.
To be quite honest, I would say that The Lullaby wouldn't be a movie I would suggest to just anyone. I would reserve it for my horror fans that like more cerebral horror with a dash of jump scares to keep it interesting. This is one I wouldn't sleep on.
The Lullaby is available on VOD March 2nd. HMS received an advanced screener of this film in exchange for review.
Robin Thompson, HMS
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