The Woman in Black

The Woman in Black is directed by James Watkins and adapted to screenplay by Jane Goldman from Susan Hill's novel of the same name. It stars Daniel Radcliffe, Ciarán Hinds and Janet McTeer. Music is scored by Marco Beltrami and cinematography by Tim Maurice-Jones. Plot has Radcliffe as young London solicitor Arthur Kipps, who is sent to the North East village of Crythin Gifford to clear up the affairs of deceased woman Mrs. Drablow. When he arrives he finds that the memory of Drablow, and her remote house of Eel Marsh, holds the village in a grip of fear, particularly those who have children.....

It's fitting that that bastion of British horror, Hammer Studios, should be behind this delightful period ghost story. For this positively oozes old fashioned values, harking back to all those wonderful spookers set around a creepy village that featured an even creepier castle or mansion at its core. More presently, the film has kindred links to the likes of The Orphanage, The Others and The Changeling, while the vengeful spirit acting out of Eel Marsh House is pumped by J-Horror like blood and Darkness Falls' Wraith bitch nastiness. So clearly The Woman in Black is not a fresh arrival to the horror splinter where the ghost story resides. However, great period ghost story films are in short supply, and Watkins' film most assuredly is a great entry in the sub-genre.

Propelling it forward is Watkins' (Eden Lake) excellent sense of mood and crafting of palpable unease. Quite often the better ghost story films are better because they operate on a what you don't see is what scares you more level, Watkins has managed to keep that aspect of his film whilst also giving us enough of the truly terrifying spirit to jolt us in our seats; often showing her to us and not to Radcliffe's Kipps! When the shocks come, and there are many and they are bona fide underwear soiling, they act as merciful releases from the built up dread, but then when Watkins doesn't deliver a shock, we are left waiting uneasily, darting our eyes all over the expansive frame, searching fruitlessly for a glimpse of something troubling. Did that wind up toy move? Is that a pallid face we just glimpsed in the shadows? That damn rocking chair is the scariest there has ever been! And on it goes....

A film such as this is only as good as the production design and setting for the story. Thankfully Watkins and his team have nailed it there as well. Eel Marsh House exteriors are Cotterstock Hall in Northamptionshire, perfectly foreboding, while the beautiful village of Halton Gill in the Yorkshire Dales gets a Hammer Horror make over to become Crythin Gifford. But it's with the interior of the house where the makers excel, an utterly unforgiving and upsetting place, brilliantly under lit by Tim Maurice-Jones for maximum scary effect.

On the acting front the film rests solely on the shoulders of Radcliffe, and he comes up trumps. Initially its awkward accepting him as the father of a young boy, and once he gets to Crythin Gifford he is dwarfed by all the other adults who live there, but once the Victorian setting envelopes him the awkwardness evaporates and the characterisation becomes more realistic and easy to sympathise with. The character is changed from the book, meaning Radcliffe has to carry inner torment as well as exuding an outer coat of trepidation blended with stoic fear. It should be noted that for much of the picture he is acting on his own, reacting to the house and the overgrown gardens and marshes, in short he is terrific and it augers well for his adult acting career. In support Hinds and McTeer are pillars of professionalism, with McTeer's Mrs. Daily a creepy character in her own right, but it's also another neat meditation on grief that sits alongside Arthur Kipps'.

The ending is also changed from that in the novel, and it's already proving to be divisive. How you react to it, and it is up for a two-fold interpretation, may dampen your overall enjoyment of the picture? Personally I have no issue with it, I was still sunk in the cinema chair breathing heavily at that point! The certification and the presence of Radcliffe ensures that a teenage audience will flock to see it, many of whom will not get the "horror" film that they are after. Hopefully the word will get out that this really is only a film for those who love a good boo jump ghost story of old, that's its target audience, and that's the people whose reviews you should trust. 9/10

"The Woman in Black" is an exceptional horror film...and much of it is because the plot is very unique and the ghost is one god-awful creature!

When the story begins, Arthur (Daniel Radcliffe) is sent on a business trip to sell Eel Marsh House....a mansion that's somehow sat vacant for years. Soon after arriving, Arthur starts to understand why....it's because the place is haunted. However, it's not a typical sort of ghost...it's an evil and vengeful spirit who is angry at the town and has been killing its children! The deaths are all very creepy and vivid...and Arthur is bent on trying to appease this evil ghost. Good luck with that, Artie!

The film really excels when it comes to a creepy atmosphere. A lot of time, you are waiting for something terrible to jump out at the screen and it works well because they both kept the tension building AND made a great payoff when it did happen! Overall, a wonderful and very creepy horror film...one of the best I've seen...and nearly earning a 10.

The Woman in Black is a great relief at times where blood and gore depends on whether a film is scary or not. Daniel Radcliffe delivers us a mighty fine performance. The best thing I felt about this film was, the atmosphere which remained dark throughout the 90 minute runtime. The first thirty minutes or so depend a lot on jumpscares that are somewhat effective but bland. In fact, the terrifying moments in this flick, are rare. It focuses on the content, and everything that makes a film perfect. However, the entire subject of children walking to their own deaths is rather unsettling. The film scares a person based on how they define 'scary'. If you are the person expecting a lot of gore and messed up faces and things like that, turn away, this film ain't for you. Watch this one for stellar performances, a great story, and fine scares that are actually the epitome of 'actual horror' A good watch.(Moreover, this one is set in the early twentieth century. There is something extremely pleaseful about period horror, dont you think?) So, I rate this film a much deserved-7.2/10

There's nothing to dislike about this new version of Susan Hill's classic ghost story, THE WOMAN IN BLACK, except that it's been filmed before (in the 1980s) and, inevitably, the earlier one was better. But this release of the story, made by the newly-revamped Hammer films, gets most things right.

First off, the production has a wonderful look to it. The locations are wonderfully bleak and isolated and the backdrops scream Gothic. The characters look and feel right, from the reliable Ciaran Hinds to, yes, Daniel Radcliffe as the youthful hero (I'm no fan of Radcliffe in the Potter films, but having seen MY BOY JACK I'm convinced of his talents).

The horror aspects of the story are where this new production falls down a little. Not because they're bad, because the scares are efficient enough in themselves...it's just that they're so, well, predictable. THE WOMAN IN BLACK is one of those films that suckers the reader into a quiet moment before startling them with a sudden movement or loud noise (and sometimes both together). And it does it over and over again. And again after that.

Still, for me, mood and atmosphere is everything, and at least this gets that right. The scares may be predictable, but in all other respects THE WOMAN IN BLACK is a film that pays affectionate homage to both its source material and the kind of glorious ghost stories of old.

OK, I'll admit, I went into this film with not very high expectations, I left on the other hand pleasantly surprised and genuinely creeped out. Daniel Radcliffe, while not the best actor, also exceeded my expectations. The movie theater was packed and people really seemed to be enjoying themselves. People screamed when they were meant to and shivered accordingly. At the end the theater broke out in applause, and it was the most packed theater I've seen since the midnight premiere of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2. Walking out into the lobby people were still blown away, and I myself could not believe what just happened. So what I'm saying is, if you're looking for a fun night to be creeped out in an old fashioned horror film sort of way, go see the Woman In Black, you will not be disappointed.