The Woman in Black

Goddamn this looks creepy.

It's an effective trailer. Though maybe not as terrifying as Don't Be Afraid of the HOLYSHITWHATWASTHAT.

Looks creepy.

And now I want to read the book.

I wasn't aware there was a book, I only ever saw the play.

Hm, Daniel Radcliffe? Nice. Might see this to see how well he can transition from being Harry Potter to other roles. I do hope he succeeds, though.

Well, the trailer's pretty damn creepy. I'm normally skeptical of period horror, but I'll check this one out.

EDIT: Ooooh, it's directed by the Eden Lake guy. My interests continue to be piqued.

edited 17th Aug '11 5:45:28 PM by slowzombie

I don't get why it's being dumped into February. This would make for a good Holiday release.

Getting good reviews. I'll have to check it out sometime this weekend.

This was a very, very scary movie. As a matter of fact, I think it's the scariest movie under a PG-13 rating I've ever seen.

Couple of points recapping what really gets ingrained into your brain.

First off, this is atmospheric horror, not graphic horror. That's how they got it in under the R rating, I suspect. So all of you with active imaginations, this'll scare you much more than most horror movies, because your imagination does half the work.

In case you hadn't guessed, this is a period piece. So there's one car (which actually becomes a plot point), Radcliffe catches trains, and the windows are glass. Apart from that, things are pretty low-tech. That was pretty cool for me, but if you aren't a fan of this time period, that's something to consider.

Almost all of the movie is in the house. There are bits in other locations, but they tend to be the breather parts. This is one of the movie's few weak spots. However, it's also one of the major strengths, because you learn and dread each and every part of the house.

Regularity. It gets to the point that if nothing's scared you for a minute or two, it's even scarier, because you know something's coming. There's always something.

This is something of a homage to old-fashioned horror. There's more implied, less shown. There's a lot of reliance on "nothing's there, nothing's there from the other direction, Radcliffe looks again and nothing's there, back from the other direction OHMYGODWHATTHEHELLISTHAT." Some folks may like that, some may not. I for one did, but if that isn't your cup of tea don't watch it. Because that happens. A lot.

The rest is somewhat spoilery, I suppose.

Rather than a couple of things basically everything in this house is pretty damn scary. Highlights: the monkeys, the dolls, the dark (this is a movie that makes you want to look past the glow of the candle and see the next horror before it sees you), the children (at least until it sinks in that they're all victims, and it's still scary then), the rocking chair and the Woman herself. Dear God, the Woman in Black herself. She's truly terrifying, especially because you don't get a clear look at her until the end.

The ending's a little odd. I have to say, though, that "Radcliffe saves the day by doing what the psychotic evil ghost-woman wants" is an even more unsatisfying ending, IMO. You have to remember that the movie's not about making you feel good at the end, it's about scaring the audience. And the Woman still being out there is definitely a scarier ending.

edited 5th Feb '12 9:03:35 PM by Ultrayellow

It's from Hammer, of course it's going to be scary.

Saw it this weekend...I haven't been scared like that since I saw the original Scream in the theater. It uses a lot of the standard ghost story/haunted house tropes, and there's more than a few Jump Scares, but they're done very effectively, and the whole thing is soaked in a dreary, dank atmosphere (literally and figureatively) that makes the tension so much worse. That's what got to me more than the actual scare scenes...it took a good half hour or so after it was over for the tension to completely work out of my system. I thought Dan Radcliffe did a good job with the lead role...several reviews have said that he was overshadowed by the more seasoned actors around him, but I think this will be a good start for his getting away from Harry Potter, at least when it comes to film.

Oh yeah - there were pre-teen kids in the theater with us...I wonder how many of them had nightmares, especially after the very last scene.

edited 6th Feb '12 7:23:00 AM by Willbyr

Just came back from seeing it. My God this is easily one of the scariest movies I've ever seen. I had to turn my head away A LOT while my girlfriend watched and told me what I was missing

An excellent horror movie.

-Watches trailer-

"What's with all the Harry Potter jokes in the comments section? Was this guy in those mov-"

HOLY CRAP THAT'S DANIEL RADCLIFFE

He looks super different with some stubble and no glasses.

edited 25th Feb '12 10:41:53 AM by RTaco

You think he looked different then? You should've seen him at the Macy's parade last year. He looks surprisingly different with his hair slicked back and wearing a suit.

If any of you who are into this sort of thing get a chance to see a good company do the stage play adaptation, I strongly recommend this also. It's pretty much the most creepy, atmospheric and unsettling thing I've seen performed on a stage.

edited 27th Feb '12 3:09:45 PM by raisingirl83