The new haunted horror flick “The Woman in Black's” old-fashioned storytelling technique is as much of a bad thing as it is a good thing.
On the one hand, the movie establishes a mood and atmosphere that sends shivers down the viewers spine. On the other hand, it does not do much of anything else, such as build tension, develop character or sincerely scare said viewers. The result is a relatively empty ghost story that will leave you yawning far more often them screaming.
In “The Woman in Black,” which is now playing at movie theaters throughout the Valley, the “Harry Potter” film franchise's Daniel Radcliffe plays Arthur Kipps, a widowed lawyer whose grief has put his career in jeopardy. Arthur is sent to a remote village to sort out the affairs of a recently deceased eccentric.
However, upon Arthur's arrival, it soon becomes clear that everyone in the town is keeping a deadly secret. Although the townspeople try to keep him from learning their tragic history, he soon discovers that the house belonging to his client is haunted by the ghost of a woman who is determined to find someone and something she lost. And no one – not even the children – are safe from her vengeance.
Although “The Woman in Black” features an ending that is to die for (the reaction from your fellow moviegoers may be reason enough to see the film on the big screen thus with an audience), the majority of the movie is spent watching Radcliffe slink around the spooky setting looking more like Shaggy from “Scooby Doo” than the fearless boy wizard we have come to know him as over the years.
Needless to say, this monotony grows tiresome rather quickly causing the viewer to wish that the titular woman just kill Radcliffe's character and get on with it. In other words, an eerie atmosphere is not enough in and of itself to sustain an audience. We need something more – especially considering “The Woman in Black's” pace is similar to that of a snail.
Still, horror movies nowadays are too quick to get gory and one that actually takes time to create a distinctive setting that its characters can explore are few are far between. Therefore, “The Woman in Black” may still be worth seeing on the big screen – especially if you long for the genre's entries of yesteryear.
“The Woman in Black” (PG-13 – 99 minutes) is now playing at movie theaters throughout the Valley. Visit FirstLook.com for specific showtimes.
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