Synopsis: A lawyer still grieving the death of his wife has to travel to an isolated town where the locals are terrified of a vengeful ghost with a penchant for killing children.
Director: James Watkins
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Ciaran Hinds
Review: The story of a grieving husband, separated from his family due to work and sent to a strange village filled with untrusting and unwelcoming locals. Is his grief causing him to see the ghosts that torment the town and who will be the next victim of the child-murdering ‘Woman In Black’.
Daniel Radcliffe, in his first major role post Harry Potter, plays the lead Arthur Kipps. I have to be honest, I never thought much of Radcliffe’s acting ability in the Harry Potter franchise and always felt that Emma Watson and the fabulous Rupert Grint acted magical rings around him and to an extent Radcliffe is out of his depth with this material. His inability to convey the emotions necessary for the depressed Kipps is obvious but luckily the solid cast and decent story covers for him.
I love a good horror story and I thought that I was too jaded to be actually scared but there were a number of points in this when I was genuinely jumping out of my seat. The cinematography was stunning and the eerie settings conveyed the mood better than Redciffe at points. What an advertisement for tourism to the UK. My only other complaint was the occasional slip into modern vernacular. I think Jane Goldsmith is an incredible screenwriter but she didn’t fully immerse the characters into the time, giving the movie an unbalanced feel. However, despite these minor failings, I loved this movie and look forward to the Blu-Ray release.
In conclusion, I think it’s fabulous that Hammer has begun creating horror movies once more and this one is sure to sit well next to their other classics.