Child abuse is given hellish form in The Lullaby.

Synopsis

Get a glimpse into the pain and suffering of a child as she contemplates the meaning of lullabies as a form a pacification of children.

Review

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. I would be lying if I said I knew that before writing this review. Knowing that it is however makes this review even more timely.

Child abuse is the central focus of The Lullaby. It confronts it head-on in an artistic and very unsettling way: from the POV of the the child. A child, it seems, that is pondering a subject like a lost soul trying to find fundamental meaning in their life. That’s a lot to put into four minutes, but it does so admirably.

The often jarring staccato shots are designed to make you uncomfortable, and they do it quite well. Bringing the true horror of child abuse out in the face of a young girl and through her actions.

We’re only in the world of this young girl for a little over four minutes, but we get more than an eyeful of what the young girl experiences at the hands of her tormentors. The camera in this case acts as a surrogate for the inner and outer being of the girl, giving us a complete view of her damaged self.

And while the images of this personal hell are projected on our eyes, we hear in voiceover the young girl contemplating what lullabies are really for. At the end, we are left with her conclusive thought on the matter:

“I don’t know what the intention of a lullaby was meant to be. But I do know that it made me disappear.”

Done as a student film for class, I believe Ms. Rimmer earned her well-deserved A+.

What did you think of The Lullaby? Leave a comment below.

Information

Genre: Horror
Country: Australia
Release Year: 2009
Runtime: 4 mins, 15 secs.
Written and Directed by: Kelsie Rimmer
Cast: Ruby Rimmer

YouTube Channel: KelsiePaiige