In London, solicitor Arthur Kipps still grieves over the death of his beloved wife Stella on the delivery of their son Joseph four years before. His employer gives him a last chance to keep his job, and he is assigned to travel to the remote village of Crythin Gifford to examine the documentation of the Eel Marsh House that belonged to the recently deceased Mrs. Drablow. Arthur befriends Daily on the train and the man offers a ride to him to the Gifford Arms inn. Arthur has a cold reception and the owner of the inn tells that he did not receive the request of reservation and there is no available room. The next morning, Arthur meets solicitor Jerome who advises him to return to London. However, Arthur goes to the isolated manor and soon he finds that Eel Marsh House is haunted by the vengeful ghost of a woman dressed in black. He also learns that the woman lost her son, drowned in the marsh, and she seeks revenge, taking the children of the terrified locals.
J**Z
Daniel Radcliffe true actor!
For me, Daniel is an actor that doesn't lie, don't pretend emotions like a lot of actors nowadays. You can tell that he really feels what he's living within the scenes, and this is why I loved this movie!
D**I
Proof that its still possible to make a great scary movie
Is there another movie genre as maligned as horor? I don't think so. From gratuitous gore fests, silly slasher cesspools and remakes that rarely live up to the originals, Hollywood and even indie film directors have had their way with horror and they all too frequently don't deliver. Some directors even try REALLY hard, and offer up plot twists to make up for other shortcomings, and while I do enjoy a surprising plot element I didn't see coming, having seen so many horror films, I usually am not surprised as the filmmakers intended.Enter The Woman In Black. Right from the first moment, you know that this isn't going to be your run of the mill, disappointing, predictable scare vehicle. In fact, if you DO go into this one trying to find some evidence that you're about to discover some crazy secret as a plot twist, you will be disappointed. Radcliffe's character isn't one of the boys the woman did away with, back for some purpose or any other devious possible surprise. No, the filmmakers decided that a simple, straight up story about a ghost imposing vengeance to the rest of the town's children after losing her boy was just the right amount of motivation they needed to inspire enough scares from the creepy old gothic house and surrounding area.There are similarities to other ghost type stories such as the point when in order to hopefully put the woman to rest, he goes into a swamp/marsh to retrieve her boy's body to put with the woman in her coffin, highly reminiscent of 'The Ring' well sequence, but ultimately, similarities don't matter. There are enough genuine bone chilling moments to fluff the hair on the back of your neck for two movies, and the acting from all actors is far above the norm usually seen for horror films. As for Radcliffe and whether he's got the acting chops to move past Harry Potter and into more adult roles, rest assured he can. He himself is left to carry much of the weight of the movie on his shoulders for long periods of time alone, save for the woman and some of the ghosts of her victims keeping him company, and he does it brilliantly and believably.I also particularly like that the filmmakers were not afraid to rebel against tying everything up into a neat little package where everyone is ok at the end, and they also left it without a real 'hey there's gonna be a sequel' moment as well. Oh sure, they could do another one, but the way the film ends, it can more than stand alone on its' own merit, and I for one hope it does. This film was so good, I wouldn't want to see a hacked up rehashed sequel with extra explanations etc, etc. Sometimes, as in this case, the one film is enough.So, If you're sick and tired of the same horror song being played again for the umpteenth time and want a throwback to great old ghost stories, The Woman In Black is for you.
A**.
Not the book, and not perfect, but compelling
I hadn't read the book before watching this movie.As an author, I wanted to see how this subject was handled. I was interested in the pacing, the plot twists, the setting, and so on.As a fan of Daniel Radcliffe, I wanted to see how he handled this kind of role.In general, the pacing was slow, exactly as you'd expect from a classic gothic tale. The setting was a visual delight, and I recommend watching the movie with the commentary turned on (after seeing it, start to finish, without the commentary) to get the most from the way the movie was designed and produced.Radcliffe's performance was remarkable. Large portions of the movie focus on him, alone, in a mundane (but creepy) setting. He has no dialogue in many (perhaps most) scenes. Despite that, he's able to convey the emotions of the character, and maintain interest. Frankly, his performance is so compelling, it's almost hypnotic.Unfortunately, the movie isn't completely worthy of Radcliffe's efforts.One major problem was: the movie didn't convey a solid enough "character in his normal world" foundation at the start of the film. We're too quickly thrown into his grief. Almost from the start, Radcliffe's character is a haunted man. (No pun intended. ) We see him living his life in the shallow, by-the-numbers manner that many grieving people adopt while they recover from a stunning loss.This film also falters due to some frankly cheesy visual elements. I won't spoil the movie with details, because I think this IS a movie well worth watching, and owning for the special features included in the DVD. However, the very last scene was such a cliche, it spoiled much of what had come before. I couldn't help laughing when I saw it.I feel that the director tried to be all things to all moviegoers. If he'd remained more faithful to the book, or to a classic "hero's journey" plot, or committed to making this a date-night horror flick, the movie would have been more successful. Instead, it's part art film, part horror, and it's not full satisfying on either count.I'm reminded of the movie, "The Haunting," based on Shirley Jackson's novel. The 1963 version was a classic -- now a little dated -- and inspired Disney's "Haunted Mansion" attraction. However, the 1999 remake tried to be an updated, more socially relevant tale, and it failed badly. Like "The Woman in Black," it lapsed into cliches at the end.After seeing the movie, "The Woman in Black," I read the book by Susan Hill. It's a modern classic and follows the well-worn traditions of gothic horror novels. The tale is slow paced and reflective. The book is also very different from the movie, from start to finish.All in all, I think devoted fans of gothic-style horror will enjoy this film enough to want to own a copy. Just be sure it includes the special features.And, for authors, this film is a good study of pacing, plotting, and what can make a story compelling, despite other shortcomings. While part of that is a credit to the director and screenwriter, as well as the movie's visual design, I'd give most of the credit to Daniel Radcliffe. He portrays a man numbed by grief, with surges of frustration and plunges into apathy. It's never a one-note or two-note performance, though it easily could have been.If the producers had committed to making this an artistic, classic gothic tale, and incorporated more of the "hero's journey" structure, this could have become an enduring, five-star, must-see movie.Fans of Daniel Radcliffe will be impressed with the subtleties of his performance. And, it's still a good movie, if you're a fan of gothic tales or horror films. But, it falls short of being a success for either audience.Get the DVD and make sure to see the movie with the commentary on, to get the most from this. The special features on the DVD make a world of difference. If I were to see just the film itself, this would have been a three-star review, at best.
T**S
Excelente producto
El paquete llegó rápido y en perfecto estado
A**O
Terror del bueno
Es difícil encontrar una película que te de algún sobresalto...Y en está los tienes..La ví en televisión, con sus anuncios.. y me dije, está se tiene que venir a mi colección
A**R
The woman in Black
Great product!
M**W
Amazing Film with Gorgeous Aesthetics
This is one of my favourite movies ever. Everything from the lighting and overall aesthetics of the film scenes, the storyline and acting, and the surprise jumps and suspense are all very well done. The cover image on the DVD is what the product looks like in real life too (I was hoping it was a placeholder image), but the film itself is a very outstanding horror movie, and it is rare to see a British horror film see levels of success like The Woman in Black, so the film is remarkable on many levels.
S**A
Film che ti fa saltare sulla sedia!
Daniel Radcliffe sta dimostrando ampiamente di non essere solo l'interprete di Harry Potter, ma di essere un ottimo attore, con parecchie frecce al suo arco! Di questo film mi è piaciuta sia la storia, che è un horror veramente raffinato (non una di quelle insulse macellerie che squalificano il genere), sia la recitazione degli attori, sia le ambientazioni, costumi, riprese, veramente capaci di suggerire il senso d'inquietudine e di crescente orrore che il film richiede. Ci sono dei momenti nei quali letteralmente siamo saltati sulle sedie, e il finale è a sorpresa (e non ve lo dico). Nonostante sia un horror, ci sono anche momenti di poesia, di drammaticità, di commozione... insomma, ne sono entusiasta, e anche volendo essere ipercritica non riesco a trovare qualcosa che non mi è piaciuto. Se guardate questo film, poi per un po'avrete paura del buio, ve lo posso assicurare!
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