Synopsis -
"In an English village, Crythin Gifford, in 1889, three young girls are having a tea party with their dolls. They suddenly look up at something off-screen and, as though hypnotized, jump to their deaths from the bedroom window.
Some years later, in Edwardian era London, widowed lawyer and father Arthur Kipps (Daniel Radcliffe) is instructed to visit Crythin Gifford to orchestrate the sale of Eel Marsh House, an estate on the marshland, and retrieve any relevant documents left by the deceased owner Alice Drablow. Upon arrival, Arthur finds many of the villagers rather unwelcoming, though he finds sympathy in a wealthy local landowner Samuel Daily (Ciarán Hinds).
The next morning, Arthur goes to meet his legal contact, Mr. Jerome, who tries to hurry him away from the village. Arthur, undeterred, travels to Eel Marsh. During his initial visit to the house, Arthur is distracted by odd noises, a bolted nursery, and the appearance of a spectral entity in funerary garb. He hears sounds on the marshes of a carriage in distress and a screaming child, but sees nobody on the causeway. He later attempts to alert the village constable, who dismisses him. Two children enter the station with their sister Victoria, who has ingested lye, and subsequently vomits blood, dying.
That night, Sam reveals that he and his wife Elisabeth (Janet McTeer) lost their young son to drowning. Elisabeth suffers from fits of hysteria, which she attributes to her boy speaking through her. When Sam attempts to drive Arthur to Eel Marsh the next day, a fleet of local men attempt to drive him off. Victoria's father blames Arthur for his daughter's death, as Arthur saw "that woman" at Eel Marsh.
At the house, Arthur uncovers correspondence between Alice and her sister Jennet Humfrye (Liz White). In her letters, Jennet denies Alice's verdict that she is "mentally unfit" and demands to see her son Nathaniel, whom the Drablows formally adopted and barred her from contacting. A death certificate reveals that Nathaniel drowned in a carriage accident on the marsh. Jennet blames Alice for saving only herself and leaving Nathaniel's body in the marsh. Jennet hangs herself in the nursery, vowing never to forgive Alice. Arthur also sees visions of dead children in the marshes, Victoria among them.
Arthur finds the nursery no longer locked. Inside, he has a vision of the Woman in Black hanging herself, alarming him. In town, Jerome's house catches fire with his daughter still inside. When Arthur attempts to save her, he sees the Woman in Black goading the girl into immolating herself. The townspeople blame Arthur for this death as well.
At her son's grave, Elisabeth tells Arthur that the Woman in Black is Jennet, who claims the souls of the village children by having them take their lives in penance for her own son being taken. Through another episode of delirium, she informs him that his son Joseph, who is coming to Crythin Gifford that night, is Jennet's next victim. In an effort to lift the curse, Arthur and Sam find Nathaniel's body in the carriage on the marsh, and place it in his nursery, where Arthur lures Jennet to him. Arthur and Sam bury Nathaniel with Jennet, though her voice echoes through the house that she will never forgive the wrongs she suffered.
Assuming Jennet pacified, Arthur and his son Joseph meet at the railway station. While bidding farewell to Sam, Arthur sees the Woman in Black lure Joseph onto the tracks towards an oncoming train. Though he attempts to save him, both Arthur and Joseph are killed by the oncoming train while a horrified Sam sees the spirits of the village children, and the Woman in Black.
After the train passes, Joseph spots a woman on the tracks, and Arthur identifies her as his late wife, the family now happily reunited. The Woman in Black watches them walk away, before sharply turning to face the audience, at which point the screen turns black."
The Woman in Black (2012 film) n.d. In Wikipedia. Retrieved 9th November 2016. From:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Woman_in_Black_(2012_film)
Producers -
- Cross Creek Pictures - "Cross Creek Pictures is an American film production studio formed in 2009. Their first production was the acclaimed Black Swan (2010), which was followed by The Ides of March (2011), The Woman in Black (2012) and Rush (2013). And also, CCP co-produced a few films with Exclusive Media.In September 2011, Cross Creek Pictures signed a deal with Universal Pictures, where the studio would release at least six of Cross Creek's productions over the following 3 years. In late 2015, Cross Creek signed a new three-year, multifaceted co-financing, production, and distribution deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment."
"This is the list of films produced or financed by Cross Creek.
- Black Swan (2010) - Budget 13 million USD - Box Office 76 million USD
- The Ides of March (2011) - Budget 12.5 million USD - Box Office 329.4 million USD
- The Woman in Black (2012) - Budget 15 million USD - Box Office 128.5 million USD
- Rush (2013) - Budget 38 million USD - Box Office 90.2 million USD
- A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014) - Budget 28 million USD - Box Office 58.8 million USD
- Clown (2014) - Budget 1.5 million USD - Box Office 2.1 million USD
- Everest (2015) - Budget 55 million USD - Box Office 203.4 million USD
- Black Mass (2015) - Budget 53 million USD - Box Office 99.8 million USD
- Legend (2015) - Budget 25 million USD - Box Office 43 million USD
- Pride + Prejudice + Zombies (2016) - Budget 28 million USD - Box Office 16.4 million USD
- Hacksaw Ridge (2016)- Budget 40 million USD -Box Office (Not yet released)
- American Made (2017)- Budget 80 million USD - Box Office (Not yet released)"
Cross Creek Pictures. n.d. In Wikipedia. Retrieved 11th November 2016. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_Creek_Pictures
- Hammer Film Productions - "Hammer Films or Hammer Pictures is a British film production company based in London. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies — and, in later years, television series. During its most successful years, Hammer dominated the horror film market, enjoying worldwide distribution and considerable financial success. This success was due, in part, to distribution partnerships with major United States studios, such as Warner Bros."
"During its original incarnation (1935−1979), Hammer released 163 films; 50 of which fall loosely under the Horror genre (including Dracula, Frankenstein, Mummy, Karnstein, Gothic, Psychological and straight Horror)."
Hammer Film Productions. n.d. In Wikipedia. Retrieved 11th November 2016. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammer_Film_Productions
- The Quiet Ones (2014) - Budget 200,000 USD - Box Office 17.8 million USD
- Let Me In (2010) - Budget 20 million USD - Box Office 24.1 million USD
- The Resident (2011) - Budget 20 million USD
- The Woman in Black: Angel of Death - Budget 15 million USD - Box Office 48.9 million USD
Distributors -
- Momentum Pictures (UK) - "Momentum Pictures is a film distributor owned by Entertainment One. Prior to 2013, Momentum was a brand of Canadian distributor Alliance Films used for its releases in the United Kingdom, and was one of the leading independent distributors in the UK and Ireland; following eOne's purchase of the company, Alliance and its divisions were folded under the eOne brand. The Momentum brand was revived in 2015 as part of a venture with Orion Pictures to jointly acquire films for distribution in North America and international markets."
Momentum Pictures. n.d. In Wikipedia. Retrieved 11th November 2016. From
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Momentum_Pictures
- CBS Films (US) - " CBS Films is an American film production and distribution company founded in 2007 as a division of CBS Corporation and is considered a mini-major studio.CBS Films will distribute, develop and produce four to six $50 million budget movies a year"
CBS Films. n.d. In Wikipedia. Retrieved 11th November 2016. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBS_Films
Timeline-
- 0:00-0:10 - The clip begins with a close- up of a child's tea-set and teapot with imaginary tea being poured into the cups. There is non-diegetic sound, that builds up in the first 3 seconds and then continues throughout the scene, that is slow and in a minor key.
- 0:11-0:16 - The clip cuts to an image of a doll being given 'tea' by a someone. It then cuts again to another doll also being given 'tea' by someone else. The music builds up even more as another layer of sound is added.
- 0:17-0:26 - The clip then cuts again to reveal the three little girls who had previously been playing with the toys.They play with the dolls and each other. The music builds up more adding more accent
- 0:27-0:33 - The two girls on the left of the screen look and smile at the 3rd girl and she smiles back and then looks back down at the doll. The girls carry on playing. The music is is present till 0:32 where it stops and then changes to a lower tone.
- 0:34-0:39 - The clip cuts to a long-shot of the girls from what appears to be a doorway. All 3 girls look up and remain fixated on the doorway for the remainder of the shot. The lower tone music continues.
- 0:40-0:42 - A mid-shot of the girls shows them all turn to look at the window. The background music is still present.
- 0:43-0:46 - The Clip cuts to a shot off a three pane window. It then begins to zoom on the window. There is a low beat in the music and then more layers build up.
- 0:47-1:06 - Shows the three girls stand up and walk towards the window with blank facial expressions and crushing anything in the way. The music continues and at 0:51 there is a a sound of a tea-cup being dropped. At 0:56 there is the sound of the teapot being crushed. At 0:57 there is sound of the dolls head being crushed. At 1:05 there is a low beat of music and then more layers of sound are added building up the soundtrack.
- 1:06-1:12 - The three girls reach to open the windows. The cuts to a close up of one girl pulling the handle on the window to open it. At 1:08 there i the sound of the handle being pulled over the top of the music.
- 1:12-1:20 - The girls climb onto the ledge and jump out the windows. The music slows and becomes more echo like as the girls jump out of the window. From 1:16 the music stops and just becomes a loud blur of sound and at 1:19 the is a musical sting with a slow, quiet hum at the end.
- 1:21-1:27 - There is a scream from a Lady who cannot be seen whilst the shot is still of the window. It then cuts to the face of a doll and you hear the lady shout "My baby".
- 1:28-1:31- The shot zooms out from the centre of the room to reveal 'The Woman in Black' stood in the doorway. The sound begins to fade and is whistle like.
Analysis -
Mise en scène -
Setting -
The Opening shots introduce us to a large loft room in 20th century England. There is high-key lighting, which we later find out comes from the large 3 pane window at the end of the room. The colours are dull and earthy.
Costume and Make up -
The costumes are representative of the time period. All three girls are wearing pale dresses with decorative frills on. They all have bows in their hair and black lace up boots.
Key Shots, Camera Movements and Edits -
- 00:00-00:16 - The clip opens with a close up of children playing with a tea set. The scene is accompanied by the use of non-diegetic music. The music is slow and in a minor key setting a creepy and eerie tone. The use of this style of music makes the audience feel uncomfortable and tense, helping them to foreshadow the bad things from the film such as death and danger. The teacups and teapot acts a symbol for the setting; teacups are seen as stereotypically British, more commonly seen as an English trait to drink tea, and so suggests to the audience that the film is set in England. As well as this, the teacups and the dolls help to set the time period for the film as they are typically seen as more traditional toys suggesting that the film is set in the past. The costumes also help to show the era of the film as they are stereotypical of the Edwardian era.
- 00:17-00:33 - The fact that the music momentarily stops at 0:32 and changes to a lower tone gives a darker tone to the clip suggesting to the audience that a bad thing is about to happen.
- 00:34-00:42- The clip then cuts to a long shot of the three girls who have now stopped playing with their toys but instead are all staring towards the same point which is not visible to the audience. The fact that the girls have stopped what they are doing suggests that the thing they are looking at has shocked them or scared them in some way. This makes the audience think about what it could be the children are looking at and why it has had that affect on them. When the girls all turn their heads slowly in synchronisation it creates a creepy atmosphere and suggests that something is controlling them as if they were robots. Throughout the scene the music has continued and is getting louder and more dominant. This could be to suggest that the story line is building up and something bad is about to happen.
- 00:43-00:46 - The clip cuts to a shot of a three pane window. The frame then begins to zoom in. This makes the audience think about the significance of the window and the closer the zoom the more important the window becomes in the narrative to come. A new layer is added to the music and the tone is slightly lower. This suggests that something bad is about to happen.
- 00:47-01:06 - During the next few shots the girls stand up and walk towards the window. The girls are all walking at the same time, speed, in a line and have blank facial expressions. This reinforces the previous idea of the girls being possessed and robotic. As the girls walk they step on their toys breaking the dolls and teacups beneath them. This could shows us the toys are fragile and easily breakable. This could be a symbol to show the fragility of the children and how there minds can easily be broken and controlled.
- 01:07- 01:27 - In the next shot we see the girls open the windows and jump out. This is not typical behaviour of young children which again reinforces the idea that the children are being controlled by an external force and have no control over their own movements or thought processes. This helps the audience get an idea of the narrative for the film. As the girls go to jump from the window the music cuts allowing a break of background sound whilst we hear a scream from a woman. The woman is not visible and screams 'my baby'. This allows the audience to understand that the children have been killed without actually telling them, making the audience think and therefore be more engaged with the film. The fact that the music stopped during the scream emphasises it and makes it more poignant.
- 01:28- 01:31 - The shot zooms out from the centre of the room to reveal a dark figure. The face of the figure cannot be seen creating a sense of mystery for the audience making them want to watch on to find out. The use of the black clothing has connotations of death leading the audience to believe that the figure is the cause of death in the film.
Focus Group Feedback-
- Ellie - "The opening to this film is good because there is little dialogue which means that you can concentrate on what is happening. The music in the background helps to set the scene as it is creepy and makes us as the audience feel scared and uncomfortable."
- Adam - "The music shows that it is a horror movie because it is quite high pitched and slow. It makes me think that something bad will happen which makes me want to carry on watching to find out what is going to happen. The scream from the ladies is effective as you don't expect it which makes it more scary."
- Helena - "The film opening for this film is effective because it makes us want to watch more. The opening is left on a cliff hanger by showing the lady which makes me want to find out why she made the children jump out the window. The dark coloured room also makes the atmosphere more creepy."
- Katy - "I like the opening to this film as it keeps the story a mystery which makes me want to watch the rest of the movie. The music is effective as it creates a chilling effect because it is in a minor key which makes us as the audience think that bad things will happen to the girls."
What I have learnt -
- When analysing this film, I learnt that the use of incidental music is beneficial to help set the mood of the film. I will used music when making my production to help the audience understand the genre of the film and to help set the pace of the film.
- I also learnt that the use of dark colours is effective as it makes the audience feel a sense of claustrophobia which is typically associated with fear. This can be used in our production to help make the audience feel scared.
