One of my all time favorites.

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Several horror fanatics active on this website, as well as more acclaimed film critics all over the world, are often referring to "The Woman in Black" as the best and most atmospheric made-for-TV horror/thriller ever accomplished. Well, guess what, they are quite right! Herbert Wise's film, based on the stunning novel by Susan Hill and turned into a screenplay by the phenomenal Nigel Kneale (who also created the original "The Quatermass Experiment"), is an incredibly slow-brooding but hyper-unsettling tale that crawls underneath your skin and haunts your memories forever. The strongest assets of "Woman in Black", apart from the flawless script, are undoubtedly the tour-de-force performance of lead actor Adrian Rawlins, the carefully elected filming locations & set-pieces and the continuously ominous ambiance with only a few (but highly effective) fright-moments. Herbert Wise particularly differentiates his film from the rest with two specific qualities that aren't frequently featuring in the horror genre, namely patience and eye for detail. The patience that Wise demonstrates in building up the tension is praiseworthy, to say the least, and the details can be illustrated via a few examples, like the spooky mansion only being accessible during low tide or the poetic beauty of mysterious woman meandering amidst tombstones. What the film doesn't feature, however, is graphic violence or gory make-up effects, but like only the case in the very best horror movies, you're not missing these. More recently, in 2012, James Watkins ("Eden Lake") directed a cinematic version starring Daniel Radcliffe ("Harry Potter" all grown up) as the tormented solicitor. The large-budgeted interpretation of Hill's novel is also adequate, but for experiencing the most authentic ghost-vibes, I advise to seek out this version as well.

Regarded by those who have seen it as one of the scariest films ever made, this subtle exercise in haunting terror is more frightening than any other '80s horror film you might care to think of. If you're a fan of the BBC Ghost Story for Christmas series which ran back in the early '70s and used M R James' stories as a basis, then you'll recognise many elements which are similar here. The period setting, the lone, isolated protagonist, and the seriously spooky black-clad figures are all present and correct. Fans of gore-filled slashers need not apply as this is an extremely slow-moving ghost story which relies on a build-up of atmosphere mixed in with the odd physical shock or two to get your pulse racing. While the low budget is apparent, the attention to period detail is great, as is the authentic acting from a mostly unknown cast. Adrian Rawlins and Clare Holman are, in particular, fantastic, Rawlins utterly convincing as the man slowly driven to the edge by the sinister ghost.The supernatural events are some of the most spine-chilling ever put on screen. The parts which affected me greatly were the bits where Kidd hears a carriage crashing into a marsh and the screams of the dying; extremely chilling moments. Also there's another jump-out-of-your-seat moment which comes out of nowhere and is guaranteed to give you nightmares. The ending is downbeat and conjures up a nice sense of impending calamity. In a way it's funny to think that over twenty-five years ago Central Television were capable of producing accurate, classic material like this. They certainly don't make stuff like this anymore. THE WOMAN IN BLACK is a modern classic, and a film which lives up to its reputation as a haunting masterpiece - it's just a shame that so few people have actually seen it!

"The Woman in Black" has Adrian Rawlins as London solicitor Arthur Kidd, who is sent to a remote seaside village to sort the estate of a recently deceased recluse. While staying at the woman's mansion on the rural marshlands, he is tormented by the sounds of a phantom carriage crash, and the apparition of a mysterious woman in black who roams the property— but that's the least of his worries.Based on Susan Hill's novel of the same name, "The Woman in Black" has been hailed and beloved by fans, and rightfully so in many ways. It's not a perfect film, but it's an almighty well-done ghost story. In the vein of other Gothic chillers such as "The Innocents" or "The Haunting", the film is indebted to a classical style— heavy on plot and mood, though punctuated by a series of legitimately scary moments that are strung along a sombre and downbeat narrative.A very handsome (if I may so so myself) Adrian Rawlins leads the film as our protagonist and does a fine job here, while Pauline Moran plays counterpoint as the mysterious and perhaps malevolent Woman in Black. Originally broadcast on Christmas Eve 1989, the film definitely has a "made-for-TV" feel to it, but the cinematography is slick and classy, and the visual elements of the film are on par with the unusually sophisticated supernatural narrative arc. The downbeat ending here is just the icing on a very ghastly cake. Overall, "The Woman in Black" is essentially the made-for-TV equivalent of classic Gothic chillers such as Jack Clayton's aforementioned "The Innocents"— that's not to say it's a bad film by any means, but rather that it runs in a similar vein, albeit with the budget quirks of a television production. Despite this, there are several remarkably startling moments that have frightened audiences for decades now, and these moments have earned their notoriety, as they are still well-crafted and effective to this day. As a television production, "The Woman in Black" is a sophisticated and nicely crafted ghost story that holds its ground against its more innovated, big-budget peers. 8/10.

I remember watching this when i was around 15 and it really did scare me, obviously if you watch it in broad daylight with other people talking it will not scare you much, but watch it in the right way and it will.If your a fan of horror films that don't contain lots of blood and guts (which I like, but they don't scare me in the slightest) then this is for you.It is the scariest film I've ever seen, the only thing that has come close to it is the stage adaptation of the book which is great.Now its not perfect, but with th money they had and when it was made its as good as it could have been.Actually looking forward to the 2012 adaptation, don't think it will be as well done but still looking forward to it.