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.

中文翻译：

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巴巴杜克（Babadook）和澳大利亚恐怖传统中高低流派之间的鬼屋

摘要在关于澳大利亚电影流派的学术和主流批评性论述中，恐怖流派是一个特别令人生厌的类别。澳大利亚的恐怖片通常被称为“澳大利亚哥特式”或“ Ozploitation”，这两个术语优先考虑民族身份，阶级和品位而不是体裁的问题。这些术语的对立关系对本地恐怖片的学术性和流行性构成了障碍。通过比较最近两个澳大利亚恐怖片及其在国内的接待情况，沃尔夫克里克2（McLean，Greg。2014.沃尔夫克里克2.电影。阿德莱德：Duo Art Productions和Emu Creek Pictures）和巴巴杜克（肯特，詹妮弗） （2014年，《 Babadook》，蓝光DVD，墨尔本：Umbrella Entertainment）。《狼溪2》是2014年澳大利亚最赚钱的电影之一，但是，由于其被认为具有商业性和低体裁的地位，因此在很大程度上受到批评。相比之下，The Babadook是2014年最受好评的澳大利亚电影，但该电影在国内的发行有限。本文探讨了巴巴杜克（Babadook）国内微薄的发行及其近乎普遍的批评赞扬如何与它与澳大利亚哥特式高技术传统的联系相联系。然而这部电影却使根深蒂固的艺术/流派，民族主义/商业主义二分法动摇。本文探讨了巴巴杜克（Babadook）国内微薄的发行及其近乎普遍的批评赞扬如何与它与澳大利亚哥特式高技术传统的联系相联系。然而这部电影却使根深蒂固的艺术/流派，民族主义/商业主义二分法动摇。本文探讨了巴巴杜克（Babadook）国内微薄的发行及其近乎普遍的批评赞扬如何与它与澳大利亚哥特式高技术传统的联系相联系。然而这部电影却使根深蒂固的艺术/流派，民族主义/商业主义二分法动摇。