The Woman In Black

Harry Potter megastar Daniel Radcliffe attempts to shake off his alter ego and break into the Hollywood A Lister's in the Edwardian set 'The Woman In Black', a big screen adaptation of Susan Hill's 1983 novel.

Radcliffe is Arthur Kipps a young widowed lawyer who must travel to the village of Crythin Gifford and sort out the estate of the deceased Alice Drablow.
Kipps is reluctant to leave his beloved son Joseph behind but is under pressure from his boss to finally resolve the complicated estate.

Upon arrival in the village he is met with a frosty welcome by most of the locals with the exception of Daily (Ciaran Hinds) who offers him a room at this stately home he shares with his wife.
In order to complete his required task, Kipps must visit the Gothic mansion of Eel Marsh House and sort through the tonne of paraphernalia.
The house is were Alice Drablow lived with her husband, son Nathaniel and sister Jennet, and is situated on a causeway, when at full tide is separated from the village.

It's pretty clear when he steps into the house that all is not well. Besides the abundance of paperwork, there are many unrelated writings and drawings which seem to connect the deaths of the Drablow family.
The character that is most intriguing is the sister Jennet as she was deemed mentally unstable!
When Pitts ponders the view from an upstairs window and spots the figure of a woman dressed in black staring up at the him, he knows he needs to ask some questions.

Events go from bad to worse very quickly when some of the children in the village are killed in very sinister and mysterious circumstances.
To his dismay, the locals accuse Kipps for these killings, blaming his probing of the Drablow legacy and visiting the Eel Marsh House.
They demand he leave immediately.

Kipps shares his findings with 'Daily' - his only ally in the village, and Daily reveals the his son was also taken from him some time ago and that the village has been terrorised by the ghost of a woman seeking revenge on the local children.
Daily's wife is obsessed with her deceased son and is fully convinced that he channels messages from the dead through her regarding future happenings.
When she experiences one such vision she tells Kipps that his son Joseph is next to die.
Kipps is distraught and sets out to save his son but first he must find a way to make peace with The Woman in Black.

If like me, you've read the book or seen the stage play, you won't be disappointed with this version of 'The Woman In Black'.
The first half hour was always going to be slow but it needed to be in order to instill the eerie atmosphere required.
But don't worry, there are lots of screams and jumps ahead to please the masses.
The setting is spot on and thankfully there is more or less a C list cast which adds realism and an element of authenticity.
Daniel Radcliffe is more than adequate in the main role and although he's used to acting with inanimate objects and CGI effects, he still manages to bring a strong mature presence to the part.

Looks like Harry Potter has grown up at last.

Score: 8/10