A young Australian Indigenous couple are terrorised by an ancient child-stealing spirit.
Australian horror, at its best, has always managed to unnerve and upset.
Like all great horror, it often stems from or is deeply linked to human trauma.
Whether through the feverish delirium of Wake in Fright, the nightmarish mystery of Picnic at Hanging Rock, or more recently, the king of the outback boogeymen, Mick Taylor in the Wolf Creek franchise, Australian horror taps into the land’s ancient and haunting presence.
More recently in the brilliant, grief driven horror film The Babadook, there is a sense of isolation that mirrors the harsh and unforgiving landscape.
These stories, woven from trauma and the landscape, reflect Australia’s unique relationship with horror.
Somewhere within the scant 86 minutes of The Moogai lies the potential for an incredible horror film. There are moments that propel it towards greatness but unfortunately it stumbles along the way and fails to make the lasting impression it aims for.
Utilising the stolen generation as a horror setting is a concept rich with potential, like a match made in heavenly hell but the finished product doesn’t quite deliver us to evil.
At times it feels undercooked; later on, transitions between scenes seem rushed and some of the performances feel like they’re still at an early stage in rehearsals, with choices that seem too obvious, on the nose and underdeveloped.
It’s a shame because there are some incredible elements in the film. The creature design is extraordinary and genuinely inventive, a welcome new addition to the chid-catcher trope.
Indigenous writer and director Jon Bell makes his feature film debut showing great promise and utilising a cast of well-known indigenous talent including Meyne Wyatt, Tessa Rose, Clarence Ryan, Shari Sebbens and Australian actors, Bella Heathcote, Tara Morice, Nicholas Cassim and Toby Leonard Moore.
The subject matter is fantastic, there should definitely be more horror films that draw from the Australian Aboriginal culture, a genre that is criminally underrepresented.
This land is ancient and filled with stories that should have a much wider audience.
I applaud the effort and look forward to seeing more from this interesting Indigenous director.
I’ll leave you with some words about the title from the director:
“There are three words we’ve traditionally used to describe spirits – Moogai, Wongai and Dogai,” he explains. “We still use Moogai to describe monsters – similar to a boogeyman – and then we also use Dogai to describe white people. I think when white people first arrived, a lot of blackfellas thought they were returned spirits, so today we still use it as a colloquialism for white people.”
Out now at a cinema near you.
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