The haunted house genre has been one of the oldest and most reliable horror conventions. Classics of the genre include Paul Leni's The Cat and the Canary and James Whale's The Old Dark House. The idea lends itself well to creating a spooky atmosphere and lots of opportunities for surprise scares lurking behind any door, painting, or hallway corner. James Watkins' The Woman in Black is certainly not a bad example of the genre and indeed has some pretty good scares, but ultimately does not completely work due to some repetitiveness and a weak third act.
The Woman in Black follows recently widowed young lawyer Arthur Kipps (Daniel Radcliffe). The death of his wife has seriously affected his life both personally and professionally. His bosses give him one last chance to shape up by traveling to a small village and help settle the estate of a recently deceased woman. He soon finds that nobody in town wants anything to do with that house as they believe it has something to do with a mysterious string of child suicides. Arthur shrugs this off at first, but begins to change his mind after a frightening visit to the house leads to dire consequences.
The film starts off pretty strong, with a creepy opening that sets up a eerie backstory. Director James Watkins does a good job setting up a spooky atmosphere, using fog and dim lighting to great effect. when the film focuses on this, it is a pretty enjoyable ride. The middle section of the film in particular has some great jump-out-of-your-seat moments. Daniel Radcliffe steps out from the Harry Potter series and gives a capable lead performance. His wide eyed everyman appeal is perfect for the lead role.
The problem with the film is it relies too heavily on shock scares set up by something surprising coming from off camera. These big surprises are punctuated with a loud sound effect to make sure the audience knows they're supposed to be scared, like a laugh track on a sitcom. Admittedly, some of the most effective scares in the film come from this device, but the filmmakers go to this well too many times, and it begins to feel repetitive and tedious. The film would have been more effective staying focused on the psychological exploration of the main character. Also problematic is a mostly weak third act featuring a solution that plays out like a less suspenseful episode of Supernatural.
Having said that, the film is competently made and will certainly have strong appeal to fans of the genre. The supporting cast is very strong, showcasing notable vets Janet McTeer, Tom Hardy, and Ciarin Hinds. It's not the film that will completely separate Radcliffe from his famous boy wizard role, but it's a good start. If only Watkins had made up his mind on which movie to make: a psychological ghost story or a B-level shocker. Ultimately, he tries for both and merely ends up with an above average film when it could've been so much more.
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