Understated chills

Rating: 7/10 (14 September 2012)

A laudably understated adaptation of Susan Hill's celebrated Gothic chiller, The Woman in Black tells a simple but effectively spine- tingling tale of disturbing events at an isolated village in early 20th C rural England.
There has been criticism in some quarters of Daniel Radcliffe's presence in the central role as casting too young. I'm not buying this. In fairness he does have relatively little to do for much of the short running time beyond looking somewhat perturbed. But his portrayal of a young, but tragically bereaved husband, somewhere perhaps in his mid- 20s, is convincingly depicted with a gaunt, withdrawn look and meekly shuffling persona. The problem, I believe, is simply the difficulty that audiences are having in seeing past the familiarity of Harry Potter as an adult in any movie. This perfectly solid performance will hopefully be a significant step in gradually recalibrating audience expectations for his future career.
Complimented by some pleasingly underplayed supporting roles, and top- notch production design, especially the deserted and overgrown manor house at the centre of the story; this self-consciously old-fashioned ghost story comes across rather like a particularly fine and visually lush BBC period literary adaptation. It won't break any new ground in the annals of horror movie making, but it is a solid reminder of just how satisfying understated chills and unsettling atmosphere can be.