I attended The Woman in Black screening with my eldest son Dexter. First of all, because obviously he’s older than the other two and because this boy is most like me in his taste for the horror genre. That said, my very 1st statement after sitting down to this film was “I hope this film scares me because its been years since I’ve been truly scared”. Quick back story: My Dad Carlos, started my love of movies when I was barely old enough to walk and he held no experience back, not even scary movies. My Dad was also editor of a paranormal magazine called El Mas Aya or in English, The Here and Beyond so around my house you really had to work hard to scare us. Stories of hauntings and reincarnation were the norm around our dinner table.

So there I found myself with my boy thinking that not much would happen but wow, was I seriously surprised! Daniel Radcliff plays Arthur Kipps, a young lawyer and widower sent out to settle the estate of a friendless and solitary widow. He needs to accomplish this miserable task to keep his job and support himself and his sweet little boy, Joseph. I was hoping that Daniel would not be Harry Potter for ever and I was not disappointed. He makes you believe the sadness that is now his norm, a sadness even his own little boy can see. Arthur takes on his task and travels to the remote and dreary village where the widow had lived and died. To say that he is unwelcome would be an understatement and even Arthur can’t put his finger on why all the children are sent inside just at the sight of his arrival. Arthur seems pretty unshakeable when he starts going out over the marsh to the widows mansion but when terrible, sad things begin to happen his fear is palpable. He resolves to make things better, to make some type of amends. Certain the woman’s spirit will finally rest.

His only ally in the village is a wealthy gentleman by the name of Daily (Ciaran Hinds) that he meets on the train on his trip to the village. The town alone is dark and uninviting, the house abandoned and spooky but oh, the woman in black! The sight of her alone is frightening my friends but the horror in this movie takes me back to real jump out of your seat horror flicks. The kind that had this reviewer jumping, screaming like a little girl and embarrassing the crap out of my boy Dex. I mean it. He has the scars on his arm to prove it. I don’t find all these cookie cutter, sequel after sequel paranormal movies scary folks. You have to make me scream and this film had me doing so at least 6 times. 

Now, listen carefully, DO NOT take your little kids to see this film. DO NOT! First of all, children do die in the film and second of all, it’s realllllllyyyyyyyy scary. But that’s a good thing. A movie to go to with your brave friends or even better guys, take a date and I can almost guarantee she will be clinging to you very soon after the movie begins. Dexter said something about the ending that was interesting. He said that it was both sad and yet happy. How can it be both? You’ll just have to go and find out for yourselves.