If someone would ask me, what studio produced some of the greatest horror classics ? I would without a doubt answer Hammer Films. Christoper Lee as Dracula, who does not love these classics from the 60´s and the 70´s ? All of them may not be great, but i would honestly say that he is the best Dracula ever, in motion pictures. Hammer Films became a legendary english film company, with a lot of horror releases that became cult films. All of them did not do well at the box office, but the comapny proved that they loved B Movies, and continued to work with great actors like Bela Lugosi, Peter Cushing, Oliver Reed, Barbara Shelley, and many more . One film that i will always remember is a film known as To The Devil A Daughter from 1976. A very odd satanist horror film, with influences from Rosemary´s Baby, and other satanic films of the 60´s and 70´s. This is not the best film that Christopher Lee made with Hammer Films, but i found myself enjoying the odd mix of christianity and satanism. If you have not seen it, i suggest you buy the uk dvd. There is a collection of Hammer Films classics released on dvd, for the fans to enjoy. If you have read my movie review blog for years, you might have stumbled across a film called Wake Wood. It was the first feature film from Hammer Films, as they ressurected after many years apart. Wake Wood did not get a lot of attention, since this was a smaller budget film. Such a shame, because it was so nice to see Hammer Films making old school horror films again, and this was a good release. You should try and see it if you can, should be avaible to buy, especially from the UK. In 2012, i was really surprised to see Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe, doing a completely different film from his past work in The Woman In Black. This film was also made from Hammer Film Studios, and turned out to be a nice release. A simple story, set close to a small british village. The film made a profit, so it is no surprise that we have a sequel in our hands. With a brand new cast, and a brand new director, is this sequel still worthy the original film, or is this another proof of a waste of time ?
World War II is going all over Europe. In London, bombs are falling while people are trying to take cover. Eve Parkins ( Phoebe Fox ), Deputy Headmistress, are helping a group of school children to stay in safety. The situation is becoming more dangerous, so Eve and the kids, evacuate together with the school's headmistress, Jean Hogg ( Helene McCrory ) to the countryside town of Crythin Gifford. As they arrive, they are picked up by air warden Dr. Rhodes, who will take them to Eel Marsh House. As the bus suffers a puncture, they all have no choice but to get to the house. Before they head off, a man named Jacob ( Ned Dennehy ) warn them about the house, and that they should not go there. Even if they hear the warning, they continue their journey. At the Eel Marsh House, you can tell it is in bad condition, but they decide to stay there anyway. Eve begin to see a woman in black, appear in front of her. Not knowing who she is, or what she wants, she tries to dig into the information. When one of the children goes missing, Eve understand that all of them could be in danger, unless there is a way to understand what the woman in black is here for.
So here we go, a sequel to a descent horror film that actually turned out to be a quite nice surprise. When i watch a sequel i usually have 2 rules.
1. Make the film a worthy sequel, and add something suprisingly unexpected, that still manage to fit into the storyline.
2. Do not repeat yourself too much, use simple details that may even make the sequel a worthy experience.
Usually most sequels do not manage to deliver enough when they get released. One of the biggest problems is that many sequels are just made to make money at the box office, and the directors don´t really care about the substance. Even if i watch most sequels to good horror films, i can´t say i enjoy all of them. There are only a few times that i found myself surprised, and those moments are precious. The Woman In Black 2 is not an awful sequel, it could have been terrible. But if you compare to the first film, this feels like a quick release just to scare audiences, but not in a positive way. Jump scares are now thrown into this film, to try and look even more scary, The problem is that they should not have done that, Remember the atmosphere of the first film ? Dark creepy locations, with the feeling of someone watching, simple things like this can make a good horror film if you use this in an intelligent way. There are some scenes here that remind us of the first film, but the difference is that it is not that scary. The plot is set in the 40´s, and the locations of some scenes are different, so there are some changes here since last time. Still, i can´t say i am pleased with the final product. Director Tom Harper was one of the directors for miniseries This Is England´86, so you know he can provide quality. I don´t think horror is his strength to be honest, since Woman In Black 2 does not have that much to be pleased about. I like the idea of the kids, staying at this abandoned house. Unfortunately it seems that director Tom Harper does not use this idea in a better way. In some ways this is a very simple sequel, with nothing original to offer. Do some of you remember the spanish horror film The Orphanage ? This was a really good horror film, made with a big heart for the genre, without being complicated. The Woman In Black 2 could have been a worthy sequel, since the idea was great to move forward to the 1940´s. In the end, it all feels dull, since there is not much to care about. The kids are the one who lift this film, they are actually better actors than the adults, so well done. If you enjoyed the first movie, skip this one. It will not give you anything fresh in return.
Rating: DD
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