Sunday Morning

I finally got round to watching the new version of 'The Woman In Black'. I've read the book and seen the original ( superb ) TV version ( It's Here ) but not seen the stage play. The film itself actually wasn't bad at all - Danielle Radcliffe, who I assumed to be far too young for the lead, was actually very good, in fact the whole cast are superb, even the dogs deserve accolades. It's atmospheric, scary and well crafted - good photography and sound. The bigest weakness is the script - unsubtle and clunky. They resort to visuals when they can't find the words, and just give up when anything too challenging happens. This is a tangibly different story to both the book and the TV version, it's not a bad development - it could have been far worse, but the 'new' bits are the weakest. Jane Goldman ( who wrote the script ) wasn't a very good choice - it's a bit annoying that there are so many fantastic writers out there, and it goes to the wife of someone who is famous, and who is right out of her comfort one. There is a clever little 'almost' twist at the end - followed by a piece of cheese so big you could see it from the moon. Checking up on IMDB, it's trebbled it's budget in takings and will probably continue to generate revenue on TV ( It will become an Xmas staple for years to come ). I liked it - but I'm going to watch the original tonight in bed and scare myself shitless.

Have work to do today, but might nip into town for a cuppa with a friend. Have broken out in rather unattractive facial psorasais, bit of a challenge - can't shave until it's under control - but not a pretty site. Probably the stress of all that hospital stuff.

I have the office window open, but I'm going to have to close it - it's really cold today.