Film Review: THE WOMAN IN BLACK (2012)

Director: James Watkins
Writers: Susan Hill (novel), Jane Goldman (screenplay)
Running time: 95 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12A

Genre: Drama/Horror/Thriller
UK Release date: 10^th February 2012

Watched at the cinema Saturday 3^rd March 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

A damp Saturday afternoon and my first chance to see the latest film under the revitalised ‘Hammer’ banner. Starring Daniel Radcliffe (of Harry Potter fame) this brought out an assortment of youths much to my dismay and, predictably, they lived down to my expectations. I didn’t let this distract me too much from the screen though and we ended up with a pretty decent afternoon’s entertainment in the end. Here’s a brief plot summary before I give you my thoughts.

When a young lawyer, Arthur Kipps, is sent to a remote coastal village in the north of England to settle the estate of a deceased client, he finds a lot more than he bargained for. Grieving himself for his wife who died giving birth to their son, Joseph, he finds a rather frosty reception at the local Inn. The following day, when Kipps decides to go to the house, at the end of a remote causeway, the locals are less than enthusiastic about him going there. Eel Marsh House is creepy and he sees what he thinks is a woman in black in the garden. Little does he know what this will mean to the locals. He is befriended by Daily, a rich man who has also lost a son; Daily invites him to stay with them. Mrs Daily is psychic and is trying to tell Kipps something. As he unravels the story of what happened at Eel Marsh House, Kipps begins to realise that his own son could be in danger, and he’s heading north with the nanny. I will leave it there or the Spoiler Police (Scary Films Division) will be moving shadows and putting strange reflections in mirrors for me (again).

Really well shot with some very subtle effects; this did impress me, but then again, we Brits are getting pretty good at it now. Now to performances and a word about Daniel Radcliffe who played Arthur Kipps; I thought he played the part well, however, because he is who he is, he comes with a certain amount of baggage. That is, we all know what he’s done in the past and we all know how old he is. The trouble is, knowing this, it made it hard for me to reconcile his actual age with the age of his character and, although he is very good, it kept nagging at me all the way through. Other performances of note include; Ciarán Hinds as Daily, Janet McTeer as Mrs Daily, Shaun Dooley as Fisher and Mary Stockley as Mrs Fisher.

This film has quite a slow deliberate pace that adds to the atmosphere and suspense of the storyline. It also heightens the effect of the shocks that hit you every now and then. The plot is quite grown up and I have heard it said that when they set the certificate here in the UK at 12A, it should mean 12 and no younger and I entirely agree. There were a few younger than 12 in the audience with me today and I can almost guarantee most of them will be having nightmares tonight. On a personal level, I enjoyed it very much. It has be criticised for there not being enough scares in it, but for me there was just enough (given its certification). Over all, if you’re over 12 and like being scared… Recommended.

My score: 7.3/10.

IMDb Score: 7.0/10 (based on 15,376 votes when this review was written).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1596365/

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 65/100 (based on 161 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 63/100 (based on 36,665 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_black_2011/

If you’re crazy enough… You can find me on Facebook at:
http://facebook.com/andy.steel3

FAVOURITE QUOTES:
Daily: I believe the most rational mind can play tricks in the dark.

Jennet: I will never forgive.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Official Site: http://www.womaninblack.com
Trailer:

Film Review: HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 (2011)

Director: David Yates
Running time: 130 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12A

Genre: Adventure/Drama/Fantasy
UK Release date: 15^th July 2011

Watched at the cinema Saturday 30^th July 2011.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Wishing to avoid the crowds I decided to wait a week before going to see this and, although it was showing in the smaller of my local cinema’s two screening rooms, it was still quite busy. I was surprised to find a good friend of mine there with his son and so I joined them on the front row (not a spot I’d usually choose, but I was surprised by the effect). Having already read the book after seeing ‘HP7: Part 1’ last year I knew we were in for a bit of a treat. Here’s a very brief summary before I give you my thoughts.

Harry, Hermione and Ron are still on the trail of Lord Voldemort’s three remaining Horcruxes. To this end they convince Griphook to take them to Greengots to retrieve one from the vault of Bellatrix Lestrange. They manage to obtain it, but are discovered and have to escape by releasing the creature guarding the vaults. Voldermort knows they have the Horcrux but they press on. Harry has a feeling the next one is back at Hogwarts and so, risking everything, they return to the school. Severus Snape has been made headmaster and he rules the school with tight discipline. Neville Longbottom and many of the other pupils have started an underground resistance group and it is these who welcome the trio back to the school. Having removed Snape, they now have to find the remaining Horcruxes and the means to destroy them. It is a race against time because Voldemort’s forces are gathering outside and they mean to kill Harry Potter. I think that’s about all I can say without them Death Eater Spoiler Police coming after me.

The story follows on (not surprisingly) directly from Part 1; there is no “the story so far” bit at the beginning so if you haven’t seen Part 1 then it may all be a bit confusing. As far as performances go, they all did a great job; Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger. Special praise goes to Ralph Fiennes as Lord Voldemort and Alan Rickman as Professor Severus Snape, I though both were excellent in their difficult roles. Also worthy of a mention were; Matthew Lewis as Neville Longbottom, Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy, Michael Gambon as Professor Albus Dumbledore, Evanna Lynch as Luna Lovegood and finally, Warwick Davis as Griphook / Professor Filius Flitwick.

There are some significant differences from the book, most of which are there to make the story flow better on screen. The only bit I was disappointed about was towards the end where Harry has a particularly stirring speech in the book; this was sadly missing from the film. On a technical level, I cannot fault it, the CGI and effects are all excellent, although much of the time it is very dark (I wouldn’t have liked to see it in 3D). Over all an excellent, and fitting, end to the franchise and one I’m happy to very highly recommend to you.

My score: 9.2/10

IMDb Score: 8.4/10 (68,140 votes when this review was written).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1201607/

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96/100 (256 reviews counted when this review was written).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/harry_potter_and_the_deathly_hallows_part_2/

LINKS:
Official Site: http://harrypotter.warnerbros.com/harrypotterandthedeathlyhallows/mainsite/index.html
Trailer:

Film Review: HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1 (2010)

Director: David Yates
Running time: 146 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12A

UK Release date: 19th November 2010

Watched at the cinema Tuesday 23rd November 2010.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I chose to go and see this on a cold damp Tuesday evening because I remember a bad experience watching the previous Harry Potter last year. I foolishly went on the Saturday of the opening week and the cinema was packed. It wasn’t until the interval that I finally managed to threaten the teenager behind me enough to stop him kicking my seat all through the second half. But that was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away… I must take some of my pills. Here’s a very brief summary before I tell you what I thought of this one (summary haters please hide the chosen one in a forest while I write the next paragraph).

Lord Voldemort and his followers have taken over the Ministry of Magic and are hot on the trail of Harry Potter. Those loyal to him try to move him to a safer location, but they are betrayed and some of their number are killed or injured. After a further attack Harry, Ron and Hermione escape and decide to go it alone. They have discovered that one of the remaining Horcruxes is at the Ministry. Posing as three of the members of the Ministry they manage to steal the Horcrux, but have no way of destroying it. In his will, Dumbledor has left each of them an item that could help. Harry has been bequeathed the snitch he captured in his first game of quidditch as well as the Sword of Gryffindor which is currently lost. Hermione discovers that it is possible that the Sword could destroy the Horcrux. A mysterious light leads Harry to the sword and they are able to destroy the Horcrux. There a three more to be found and Lord Voldemort is becoming more and more powerful as time goes on. I have missed an awful lot out, but those are the salient points and, I hope, very few (if any) spoilers.

As we have come to expect, this is a beautifully made film, although much darker than the others. It was nice to see the three main characters out in the real world for a change. I love the animation that was used for the explanation of the meaning of the Deathly Hallows, beautifully done! Great performances all round, particularly from Daniel Radcliffe as Harry, Rupert Grint as Ron and Emma Watson as Hermione. All are growing into fine actors.

As you may notice from reading my summary (assuming you weren’t hiding in a forest), that a knowledge of all of the previous six episodes does help when watching this instalment. I did find it a bit hard to get into at first, but was soon enthralled again. The scenes in the ministry did remind me a little of Terry Gilliam’s 1985 film Brazil and there are more than hits of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ throughout. Over all, a very good film and one I heartily recommend.

My score: 8.3/10

LINKS:
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0926084/
Official Site: Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (Official Site)
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK/video/screenplay/vi3126958361/