Woman in Black, The (2/3/2012)

Rated PG-13 for thematic material and violence/disturbing images.

Starring Daniel Radcliffe and Ciaran Hinds

Directed by James Watkins

The Woman in Black is the scariest movie of the year.

Arthur Kipps (Daniel Radcliffe), a widowed lawyer whose grief has put his career in jeopardy, is sent to a remote village to sort out the affairs of a recently deceased eccentric. But upon his arrival, it soon becomes clear that everyone in the town is keeping a deadly secret. Although the townspeople try to keep Kipps from learning their tragic history, he soon discovers that the house belonging to his client is haunted by the ghost of a woman who is determined to find someone and something she lost… and no one, not even the children, are safe from her vengeance.

It’s been well-documented that I am not a fan of horror movies. My wife on the other hand absolutely loves them. So it should be no surprise that she coerced me to see The Woman in Black. I walked into the jam-packed theater on opening night with my wife and two other friends, and settled into my seat for what I thought was going to be just another lame horror movie. Boy was I wrong.

The Woman in Black is a smart, well-done movie that will scare the crud out of you (at least it did my wife and I).

OK, first things first, there are a few horror movie clichés. You know what I’m talking about…everything is quiet and something pops up to make you jump three feet in the air and throw your popcorn everywhere. Well, I jumped out of my skin more times than I care to admit. But the strong part of this film is the story.

So let’s talk about the story. Arthur Kipps is desperate. He is still mourning his wife’s death and is searching for answers. He thinks he still sees and hears her, and wonders about his own sanity. He is wrestling with death and the “what happens when we die” questions. So when he starts seeing the woman in black he is more determined than fearful. And all of a sudden it makes sense that he is opening that door and why he’s going upstairs, when he should be running away…very, very quickly.

I also have to give props to Daniel Radcliffe. He is intense, believable and really shows that he can act. There is a good chunk of time where he is alone on the screen and manages to carry the movie squarely on his shoulders.

Between Daniel Radcliffe, the story, the decent special effects and of course all those creepy toys, I have to give The Woman in Black a “Theater Worthy.”

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
There is no sex or nudity and the language is minimal.

All of the scenes at the haunted estate are chock-full of creepy toys and strange noises and will be way too scary for younger viewers.

There are several disturbing deaths in the movie, mostly children who kill themselves at the bequest of a ghost. Grief and mourning for these children are a large part of the plot; some may be disturbed by the crying and screaming of parents whose children have just died, a woman who is visibly mentally unbalanced as a result of her grief, and a character’s grief for his wife.

Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):

Q: What’s the message/theme of this movie?
A: There is a lot of death and mourning in this film. And in one scene in particular we see Arthur and Daily wrestle with the “What happens when we die?” question. So let’s start there, “What are some of the beliefs out there about what happens when we die?”

What do you think happens when we die?

Q: How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
A: What does the Bible say about life after death?

There are many parts of the Bible that talk about life after death. In 2 Corinthians, Chapter 5, Paul assures us that we can be confident and hopeful about the future God has for his believers after we die.

Read 2 Corinthians 5:6-9, “So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. For we live by believing and not by seeing. Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these earthly bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him.”

According to this verse, Paul says when we live in these bodies, we’re not at home with the Lord. What do you think he means by that?

He then says that we live by believing and not by seeing? What does that mean? Give an example of how we can do that?

Then he repeats his confidence in the fact that it’s going to be much better when we are at home with the Lord. How does living by faith/belief and not by sight, help us value our eternal place rather than our temporary existence here on earth?

What does this look like in your life?

Q: How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
A: This movie may cause many of us to think about life after death. In the Bible, Paul’s perspective of the afterlife is one of hope, longing to be home with the Lord.

Some of us might really struggle with that. I mean, sure, we love God, but at times it’s pretty comfortable here on earth. It’s sometimes difficult to think of “death” as a pleasant place when the only representation we’ve seen of the afterlife is cartoon versions of heaven where we sit on a cloud strumming a harp.

Paul assures us with “confidence” that we would rather be away from these earthly bodies. That indeed does take some “faith” not “sight,” because we haven’t seen heaven. Maybe it helps to remember that the very God who made this earth made heaven. And imagine a place with all the positives of earth, but with no pain, no loss, no jealousy, no gossip, no fighting… without all of these things, there’s definitely no Jersey Shore. Wow, heaven is sounding better and better!

So Paul tells us (vs. 9) to make it our goal to please him.

How can you specifically live to please God this week?