The Woman in the Yard Review

 

I just saw the new movie “The Woman in the Yard,” and here are my thoughts on the film…

After the accidental death of her husband, a woman tries to piece her life together while raising her kids on their farm while also dealing with a broken leg when a strange woman in black appears in their yard and will not leave.

The cast all did a fantastic job; Danielle Deadwyler as Ramona is a character you have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, she just lost her husband, and he’s trying his best; on the other, she clearly has some form of bipolarism and depression and is clearly not making the best decisions for her family. During a lot of the film, you go back and forth with her, not knowing if he's going to help against this creepy woman or be a hindrance.

The son, Taylor (played by Peyton Jackson), is also excellent; he’s the glue trying to keep everyone together and stepped up to be the man of the house but is also sick of dealing with Ramona‘s issues. For such a young actor, he does a great job at portraying a lot of complex emotions while still feeling like an authentic teenager. I think this kid really is going to go places in the future.

The little girl (Estella Kahiha) does a good job at being a cute kid; an actor, Russell Hornsby, I like, plays the husband in a small supporting role, and without giving too much away about the woman in the yard herself (Okwui Okpokwasili), let me just say… Grace Jones would be proud lol.

Jaume Collet-Serra‘s direction is creative; for a movie that takes place all in one location, he gets very creative and stylish with the camera shots and movements. Definitely keep the pacing going and feel lively.

I appreciate how in the first half they really try and develop this family and their dynamic, and while there aren’t too many scares at first, by the end, it gets really trippy and psychological, and I especially liked how the villain used her powers; I thought that was pretty creative.

I can see if certain viewers get annoyed at Ramona at the beginning for not doing the “local” moves. I mean, there’s a seemingly crazy woman in her yard talking crazy shit, and she makes a lot of dumb choices, but

There are explanations for it.

The “creature” in this movie is definitely a metaphor for what the main character is going through, which I’m not going to spoil because it involves a twist, but for the most part I thought it was handled well. Some parts could feel a bit heavy-handed, and some of the powers at the end could be a bit confusing and not make the most cohesive sense, but you’re still able to follow and go along with it.

I would describe this as like if Jordan Peele and R.L. Stein made their own version of The Babadook. Plus, it’s a short movie, barely an hour and 30 minutes, so if you want to watch like a fun spooky movie, maybe if you have young kids who are trying to get into horror, this is a good choice… I give it a high three stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️.