The Moogai

When it comes to the way diversity and stories in first nation culture are told we realise after seeing this film that we have barely begun to scratch the surface. Notions of dreamtime spirits and superstition are touched on and embellished in which a new horror genre unique to Australia is born. Soft edge shots and emotionally intense close ups will have you jolting from your seats as Shari Sebbens and Moyne Wyatt (The Sapphires, Redfern Now) play on our fears from the moment they bring their newborn baby Jacob home. There's definitely something here that is yet to be fully exploited with the promise of 40,000 years of history to draw from in this kind of horror story.

The film provides great insights into Indigenous culture, a good story, and a wonderful new monster!

The Moogai itself is a bogeyman with a very effective nightmarish quality. It seems to me to be a metaphor for a new memory of white government stealers of children. It is pale skinned and two-faced and wants to take children for mysterious reasons of its own: just like the actual government officials did. The name Moogai is very similar to the word for white people, Dogai. No doubt a few generations ago the parents of Indigenous children would have told them to run from the Moogai/Dogai to avoid being taken.

So the real history merges with the ancient myths.

There is a clever interplay of themes regarding mental illness, bigoted attitudes, traditional myth and past attitudes of government officials. A lot was covered.

The climax was horrifying mainly to the brilliant monster which will give you nightmares.