The woman is a 2012 British horror film directed by James Watkins and written by Jane Goldman, and is based on Susan Hill’s novel of the same name. Produced by Hammer productions the film stars Daniel Radcliffe, Ciarán Hinds, Janet McTeer, Sophie Stuckey, and Liz White. Incidentally a 1989 television adaptation was also done on the same story, to much success.
- The woman in black is Jennet Humfrye, a woman who was declared mentally unfit and her young son Nathaniel, was legally adopted by her sister Alice Drablow and her husband. In correspondences that Arthur Kipps later reads, Jennet denies Alice’s verdict of “mentally unfit” and demands to see her son Nate. While Alice and Nate were riding in a horse carriage they got stuck in a marsh and only Alice survived. Jennet blamed her sister hung herself in the nursery, vowing never to forgive Alice.
- Many years later after old Alice Drablow dies, Jennet still haunts the small Edwardian village. Sightings of her dressed completely in black, forewarns the death of a child. Widowed London lawyer Arthur Kipps is sent to the village to examine the papers left by Alice & oversee the sale of the Eel Marsh House. Arthur arranges for his son and his nanny to visit him in the village in a couple of days.
- Arthur finds the villagers reluctant to talk to him and gets no response on the house or the death of the window. His only solace is Samuel Daily and his wife Elizabeth, who let him stay at their house as the local inn is full. The Dailys’ have been a victim of this tragedy as their own son died by drowning and his death drove Elizabeth a little over the edge. She dotes on two small dogs and treats them more like young boys rather than pets.
- On visiting the Eel Marsh house, which lies in a desolate end of the marshes where fog sets in regularly, he sees a woman in black but is unable to find her. He witnesses the death of a young girl, who took fatally drank lye. While spending the night at the house, with just a dog that Sam lends him for company, Arthur finds the letters and begins to understand the story. He gets frightened when things move and noises are made in the nursery, including toys of Nate that play on their own. Arthur also sees visions of dead children in the woods outside the House. The Woman in Black appears hanging from a roof beam.
- By morning Sam arrives and they go to the village to find a young girl has set fire to her family house. Arthur rushes in to rescue her but he sees the woman in black just before the girl douses herself and goes up in flames. Elisabeth says the Woman is Jennet, who appears before she takes a child away by having them commit suicide. Fearing that Arthur’s son Joseph maybe next, Sam & Arthur find Nate’s dead body stiyll in the carriage on the marsh, and place the boy’s body in his nurser. Arthur lures Jennet’s ghost to the body. Arthur and Sam then bury Nate with Jennet.
- At the railway station Arthur & Sam greet the nanny & Joseph. Arthur asks the nanny to make arrangements for the 3 of them to go back to London that night itself not wanting to stay there any longer. While the nanny is getting tickets and Sam & Arthur talk, Joseph is led to the railway tracks on seeing the woman in black. Arthur notices his son walking towards a train and rushes to grab him. We see the train pass by and then …..this part is a bit unraveling. From what I understand, both Arthur & his son are killed by the train and their spirits are greeted by that of his dead wife’s. The three of them leave as a family as the woman in black looks at them for a moment before screeching into the camera! The end!
It’s kinda slow and dull for most parts and the ending is a bit cheesy and predictable. 7 outta 10!