The Woman in the Yard | Film Review

A family experiencing grief are shocked when they wake up one morning to find a woman dressed in black sitting outside of their home. As the mysterious woman gets closer and closer, Ramona (Danielle Deadwyler) must do whatever it takes to protect her children.

The trailer for this film gives absolutely nothing away, so as excited as I was to see a new horror film, I had no idea what it would be about.

I feel like I'm the only person who liked this film! I can completely understand the issues with it, particularly the ending, but I loved how unique and creative it was.

The tone and setting are both really odd. It's hard to work out where this is in both the setting and period of time. Sometimes it feels like something from the 1900s, and then a character pulls out an iPhone and things get really confusing!

The tension is created really well and grows with the film. It never lets up, and a lot of this directly mirrors how the characters are feeling.

You're on the edge of your seat almost the whole way through.

The performances were great. The kids, played by Peyton Jackson and Estella Kahiha do a great job, and Deadwyler is phenomenal in this role, as she is in everything she does. Their relationships feel really authentic.

The visuals were amazing at times. This had the issue of some other modern films where you can't see anything on the screen when it's dark, but other than this the imagery, and the use of light and shadows, was really well done.

There were also some really fun jumpscares - this is definitely one to watch with other people!

But then we get to the ending, and the explanation of who this mysterious woman was and what she was doing in front of the house. Now, with no knowledge of anything other than what the film showed us, I can completely understand why many people didn't like this, or just didn't understand it. Because as intriguing as it was, I was also in the camp of not really understanding it and thinking it was a bit too ambiguous.

But when the film finished and I read up about it, I actually really like the idea, and I appreciate what the filmmakers were going for. While I don't think this was executed in the best way, I think it's unique and fascinating, and I think they should have made it much more overt in the film - and also fixed some of the plot holes this causes.

So overall, with all the knowledge around the film, I enjoyed it. It was a great watch, and the ending was ambitious and thought-provoking (once you understand where it's going). It won't be for everyone but I had a good time with it.

7/10