Don’t Believe the Lies: This Peacock Horror Movie is Actually One of the Year’s Best
I try not to read any critics’ reviews until after I’ve seen a movie myself. That isn’t to say I dismiss them (I am one, after all), but I try to go in as unbiased as possible. Critics serve a key role, no doubt, much as people might begrudge them, though they’re also just people. Everyone feels differently about everything. While Managing Editor Josh Korngut and I might be the same person, I otherwise respond to art in my own way. So, too, does everyone else.
What I’m getting at is sometimes the year’s big critical flop isn’t so bad after. More than that, it’s sometimes even good. An early column I worked on here at Dread Central was focused on just that—rotten movies that deserved better. So, I’m certainly aware of a movie’s critical reception when I go into it, but I try really hard not to let that frame my expectations. If it did, I wouldn’t have loved The Woman in the Yard as much as I did. Seriously, this is the real deal, and it’s streaming on Peacock now.
Per Peacock: An otherworldly woman sends a family into a seemingly inescapable nightmare. Already grieving the death of her husband, Ramona faces a new fear when this mysterious figure appears outside her farmhouse. With the woman continually creeping closer, Ramona must protect her children from the chilling grasp of this haunting entity whose unknown intentions are anything but peaceful. From Blumhouse, producers of The Invisible Man and The Black Phone.
Jaume Collet-Serra never messes around, and with The Woman in the Yard, he’s flexing the same directorial muscles that helped elevate the likes of House of Wax and The Shallows. Seriously, the movie is gorgeous, and for as familiar as debut writer’s Sam Stefanak’s script sometimes is, Collet-Serra ensures the visuals remain the grounding force.
And, sure, Stefanak’s script is very much a contemporary one. That is to say, the real horror is the trauma we met along the way. But, hear me out—here, I didn’t mind? Stefanak certainly has greater reason for horror as trauma metaphor than most, and with Danielle Deadwyler in the lead, I’d buy pretty much anything. She’s nothing short of sensational here, further reminding us that the best performances are often hidden away in microbudget horror movies. The Woman in the Yard is unsettling, gorgeously composed, and fiercely performed. What more could you want? Check out what fans are saying online below:
If The Woman in the Yard has just a dozen fans, consider it 13 now. I loved it. What about you? Did the reviews turn you off? Any interest in catching it on Peacock now? If you do, definitely let me know what you think @Chadiscollins.
Categorized: News
