Sometimes all a movie needs to peak my interest is a solitary film still. Looking as forlorn and concerned as
Deborah Kerr in the extraordinary ghost story
The Innocents (which I went gaga for on
Blu-ray last year) with a creepy, ancient building looming in the background - here's our first look at
Rebecca Hall in
The Awakening, a similar Henry James style ghost chiller from the BBC/Canal Plus that is hoping for a UK release later this year. The movie is the archetypal ghost story. Set in the 1920's - Hall plays Florence, an occult debunker who uses rational and scientific explanations to dismiss fantastical ghost theories. When she is requested to investigate the mysterious death of a young boy, rumoured to have been caused by ghosts haunting a boarding school in the remote area of the countryside, Florence starts to doubt her own beliefs as she delves deeper into the mystery (probably involving two-faced teachers & parents... you know the drill). Yes it could easily be an episode of Jonathan Creek, especially with the modest talent in TV helmer
Nick Murphy directing the drama from a script by
Stephen Volk (creator of Brit chiller series Ghostwatch) but with a notable cast that also includes
Dominic West, Imelda Staunton and
Joseph Mawle - we're hoping for something more classical. And if not quite The Innocents, if it's half as good as Nicole Kidman's
The Others, we'll be happy. source -
the playlist (though it came via
HeyUGuys and
BBC)