Directed by

James Watkins

Starring

Daniel Radcliffe

Let’s face it: Daniel Radcliffe has probably already been in the most successful movie of his career. With the last Harry Potter movie earning more than a billion dollars worldwide, Radcliffe has little chance of topping that film. Similarly, he has little chance of escaping being known as Harry Potter for the rest of his life, since even his attempts at Broadway success were marred by screaming fangirls. Knowing that, Radcliffe can probably be more selective in his roles than most young actors. For his first post-Potter role, Radcliffe chose horror movie remake “The Woman in Black.”

“The Woman in Black,” based on a 1983 novel and a 1989 film, sees Arthur Kipps (Radcliffe) traveling to a small village in England to settle the affairs of deceased Alice Drablow. He arrives in town to find that everyone is afraid of Drablow’s house, yet no one will tell him why.

Of course, Kipps visits the house anyways. While he looks through her papers, he hears noises both inside and outside the house. When he goes to the window to investigate, he briefly sees a woman in black, who then instantly disappears. When he returns to town, he finds that a young girl has poisoned herself with lye, which is then blamed on his visit to the house. According to the villagers, whenever anyone sees the Woman in Black, she kills a child in order to exact revenge for the death of her own child.

The plot is certainly compelling and provides for more than enough jumps, gasps and yelps from the audience. With expert cinematography and art direction, “The Woman in Black” is better than most horror movies. Even if the house in the middle of a swamp isn’t scary enough, the camera is placed so that even miniscule changes in the background are perceptible to the audience, who can jump without Kipps even knowing anything is wrong.

On the subject of Kipps, many eyes will pay attention to Radcliffe’s performance. While not Oscar-worthy, he turned in a believable, thrill-inducing performance that was perfect for the role and the movie. In other words, he knocked this one out of the park.

Unfortunately, though, the movie did not. Even with the cinematography and acting, “The Woman in Black” fell short. Parts of the lore of the Woman in Black didn’t quite fit, and the climax was just, well, anticlimactic. The movie left a feeling of emptiness, as if something was missing. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, though.

“The Woman in Black” was a decent horror movie. By horror-movie standards, it was actually quite good, with excellent cinematography. Unfortunately, little attention will be paid to the technical aspects of the movie. Even with its phenomenally creepy trailer, the movie’s core audience will surely be Harry Potter fans trying to recapture the magic. Every article, including, it seems, this one, will focus on Daniel Radcliffe’s post-Potter career instead of the merits of the movie. “The Woman in Black” herself will be haunted by an even more frightening spirit—that of Harry Potter.

Where

The Pageant

When

Sun. Jan. 29, 6 p.m. (door 5 p.m.)

Price

$22

You may know him as Rev. Run’s preteen son who terrorized “Run’s House,” but Diggy Simmons is trying to make a name for himself. After releasing his first mixtape, “The First Flight,” in 2009, Diggy garnered buzz across the Internet and the industry. This buzz then translated into a record deal with Atlantic Records.

The 16-year-old’s second mixtape “Airborne” dropped in 2010, preceded by the song “Oh Yeah,” which featured Lupe Fiasco and Pharrell Williams. All of this left fans thirsting for Diggy Simmons’ debut album. In 2011, Diggy was featured on two tracks: Dionne Bromfield’s “Yeah Right” and Mindless Behavior’s “Mrs. Right,” which became a top-10 R&B song.

Finally, over the summer, Diggy released his first major-label single, “Copy, Paste.” While not a runaway hit, the song did peak in the top 30 of Billboard’s hip-hop charts. Simmons then released his second single, “Do It Like You,” featuring Jeremih, in the fall.

While his debut album, “Unexpected Arrival,” does not yet have a release date, Diggy is raising buzz through large touring efforts, including the Scream Tour with Mindless Behavior. This weekend, however, Diggy will be performing solo at The Pageant, right on the Delmar Loop. Will Diggy blow up to become the next big thing? Walk on down to The Pageant on Sunday and decide for yourself.

Aubrey Drake Graham, more commonly known as Drake, has now almost become rap royalty. Many major hip-hop and R&B artists have collaborated with him, and his debut album, “Thank Me Later,” sold a million and a half copies with only one top 10 single. His new album, “Take Care,” has already spawned two hit singles: “Headlines” and “Make Me Proud,” which features Nicki Minaj.

As a whole, the album just seems very “Drake.” The rapper is introspective, dark and vulnerable as he explores his newfound fame and his past relationships. “Take Care” is creative, but it also stays in what has become Drake’s lane of rapping and singing his deepest emotions. The rapper has said that this album was less about creating radio hits and more about telling stories, and there’s no doubt that he delivered on his word. Songs like “Marvins Room,” “Look What You’ve Done” and “Over My Dead Body” display Drake’s uncanny ability to lay a story out in front of his listeners.

On the other hand, his album isn’t without its catchy moments. One of the best songs on the album, the title track “Take Care,” features an all-too-catchy hook from his “What’s My Name” collaborator, Rihanna. Far from the only guest, Rihanna is also joined on the album by Lil Wayne, André 3000, Kendrick Lamar, Birdman, Nicki Minaj and R&B newbie The Weeknd—who appears on five songs. The Weeknd is featured on another one of the better songs, “Crew Love,” which blends the singer’s musical style with Drake’s. While “Thank Me Later” was great, “Take Care” is even better as Drake expands the storytelling abilities that we have come to love.

Courtesy of FOX

The Bones cast returns in the season seven premiere, airing Thursday, Nov. 3, at 8 p.m. on FOX. Pictured above, from left to right: Michaela Conlin, T.J. Thyne, Emily Deschanel, David Boreanaz, Tamara Taylor and John Francis Daley.

Some say that it’s a cheap and easy ploy to get the two together and that the show jumped the shark. They feel that this pregnancy takes the fun out of their flirtation. That said, the producers and writers seem to feel that this was the best way to deal with Deschanel’s real-life pregnancy. Plus, even if they do get together for a time for the sake of the pregnancy, there is no question that they won’t be able to stay together.

Oh right, there’s also crime. According to one of the executive producers, the main antagonist in this season will be more tech-savvy than the villains in the past seasons. Hopefully this season-arching nemesis will be able to live up to the show’s past storylines.

Of course, with Deschanel’s pregnancy and impending birth, “Bones” has to be creative with their season. After their first episode tonight, the show will air six episodes before the year is out, with the plot starting months after the end of the last season. Then, after its backdoor pilot in the last season of “Bones,” the show’s spinoff “The Finder” will replace its parent midseason. In the spring, “Bones” will come back with the remaining 11 episodes. Whether “The Finder” will be able to live up to and adequately replace its predecessor remains to be seen.

Has “Bones” jumped the shark? Maybe, although the new twist might throw some variety into the tired roundabout romance. Find out Thursday night when the seventh season of “Bones” begins at 8 p.m. on FOX.

In the mid-2000s, Patrick Stump, Pete Wentz, Andy Hurley and Joe Trohman rocked the worlds of high schoolers everywhere as members of the band Fall Out Boy, with their top-10 hits “Sugar, We’re Going Down,” “Dance, Dance” and “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race.” In 2009, however, the group decided to take a break for an indefinite amount of time. Stump, the lead singer of the band who was never the star (that responsibility fell on Wentz), announced a couple months later that he was going to release a solo album. This leads us to “Soul Punk.”

The album serves as a chance for Patrick Stump to display his singing chops outside of his rock band, and he succeeded. The problems for Stump lay more in his song selection. While his falsetto soars on tracks like “Allie,” the songs do not provide a unique sound for the frontman. “Allie,” while an amazing song, sounds like it could have been performed by Maroon 5 if Stump sounded more like Adam Levine. Another song, “Run Dry,” has an admirable message about alcoholism, but it’s a two-part song that, strangely enough, channels Michael Jackson in the second half.

That said, the album isn’t without its breakthrough moments. “Dance Miserable” is a standout with its ’80s soul vibe, kicking bass and awesome backup singers. The first single, “This City,” also inspires confidence in Stump’s ability to create a catchy album, especially during the remix with Lupe Fiasco. While Stump certainly proved that he can create a solid album, he has yet to show that he can succeed without his band.

Lenny Gilmore | RedEye | MCT

Eminem performs at Lollapalooza Sunday, August 7, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois.

This summer, Kreayshawn splashed onto the hip-hop scene with her viral hit “Gucci Gucci.” Though not the most lyrically inventive song, “Gucci Gucci” and its accompanying video were catchy, stylish and different. At least the song was unique enough to amass more than 19 million views on YouTube and drive Columbia Records to quickly sign her.

Even so, her success has often been charged with “exploiting black culture” and is more often than not attributed to her race.

These claims are nothing new, as Eminem faced the same opposition when he debuted. Unfortunately for Kreayshawn, her detractors don’t seem like they will be going away any time soon. Eminem had the fortune of being able to both authenticate his origins and prove his lyrical skills. Kreayshawn has had no such luck. While she claims to be from “the hood,” her credibility has been doubted many times.

That said, the claim that she’s only famous because she’s white is absurd. Maybe I’ve been living under a rock, but I haven’t seen many rappers do what she does. Even if she lacks lyrical prowess, Kreayshawn crafted a catchy, fun song, which is what hip-hop is all about these days. “Gucci Gucci” isn’t meant to “exploit black culture,” but to entertain with its catchy hook and stylized video.

Interestingly enough, other white rappers rising in popularity this year haven’t faced the same stigma. Yelawolf and Mac Miller both have albums coming out this fall, and very little controversy follows them.

Mac Miller, however, has fallen into another trap of the white rapper: being compared to Eminem. Since Eminem is the only white rapper with a prolonged career, he serves as the archetype against which every other white rapper is compared. After Miller’s viral hit “Donald Trump” hit 20 million views on YouTube, Donald Trump recorded a video praising him and calling him the “next Eminem.” This caused a flurry of activity on the Internet because, as anyone who has listened to Mac would know, he is nothing like Eminem. Just the fact that he is white invites comparisons to the legend, even though their styles are completely different.

Today, it’s impossible for a white rapper to debut without that qualifier attached to his or her title. While Eminem seems to have lost the stigma, new artists cannot escape the label. When will this racial divide end?

For fans of

Kelly Clarkson, Miley Cyrus, Paramore

Singles to download

‘Skyscraper,’ ‘In Real Life,’ ‘All Night Long’

It’s been a tough year for Disney star Demi Lovato, but she proclaimed her return over the summer with “Skyscraper,” the soaring first single off her new album, “Unbroken.” The aptly named song was the highest-charting solo single of Demi’s career, peaking at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The single featured Demi’s emotional vocals, proving why she deserves to be a recording star. Those who hoped for an album full of mature, emotional songs, however, will be slightly disappointed. There are certainly plenty of emotionally charged ballads on “Unbroken,” including “Lightweight” and “Fix a Heart.” “Give Your Heart a Break” resides in this lane too, but it is “For the Love of a Daughter” that really shines in this category. Although reminiscent of Lindsay Lohan’s “Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father),” the song clearly cements Lovato’s place in the industry. Her voice winds beautifully over the track as she tries to convince her father to “put the bottle down.”

Elsewhere, Demi switches genres and soulfully belts on “In Real Life” and “My Love Is Like a Star,” showing her versatility. The biggest problem arises when she regresses to her Disney roots, like in “Who’s That Boy” with current sensation Dev and “You’re My Only Shorty” with Iyaz. Both songs, while possibly appealing to the Radio Disney crowd, fail to impress musically.

“Unbroken” proves that Demi Lovato has a voice and a song to sing, but her vocal adventurousness coupled with a fear to placate her core audience lead to a somewhat scattered album.

While “31 Minutes” brought Posner to mainstream media’s attention, the Duke graduate’s buzz had been building online for over a year before the album’s release. In March 2009, Mike posted his second mixtape, “A Matter of Time,” on iTunes U for free. The mixtape, a mixture of pop, R&B and hip-hop, catapulted Posner into tastemakers’ consciousnesses. The tape, which features his now-signature breathy falsetto, showcases Posner’s unique voice over his own production.

Four months later, J Records signed the Internet phenomenon. This led to another mix tape, “One Foot Out the Door,” which was released in October 2009. Similar to “A Matter of Time” in many ways, “One Foot” also featured hints at Posner’s upcoming major label debut. Although none of the snippets appeared on “31 Minutes,” they nonetheless gave his fans a look into what his debut would sound like. That same month, Posner was also featured on the ever-popular PerezHilton.com, an achievement that foreshadowed his success to come.

Fast-forward to the summer of 2010. Posner has just graduated from Duke while recording his album and touring the country. Now ready to commit to his career, he released his first single, “Cooler Than Me,” which he originally featured on “A Matter of Time.” The single came with revamped production and without Big Sean, who was featured on the original. A few months later, the single hit the Top 10 and was a radio mainstay throughout the summer.

The album, released in August 2010, unfortunately failed to spark consumers’ interest, unable to sell a substantial number of copies. Likewise, his two following singles, “Please Don’t Go” and “Bow Chicka Wow Wow,” while successful (peaking at numbers 16 and 30, respectively), failed to match the success of their predecessor.

Now, once he finishes this album cycle, Posner will begin work on his sophomore release, “Sky High.” Less than a year after his last visit to St. Louis—he performed at the Pageant last October—Posner will now be headlining this year’s fall W.I.L.D., proving why he’s “cooler than” the other guys.

Courtesy of Fox 2000 Pictures

“Water for Elephants” tells the story of Jacob Jankowski (Robert Pattinson), a college student whose parents die, leaving him orphaned and penniless. After stowing away on a circus train, Jacob joins the company and becomes the veterinarian. In order to draw in bigger audiences, the head of the circus, August (Christoph Waltz), acquires an elephant named Rosie to be ridden by the show’s star Marlena (Reese Witherspoon), who also happens to be August’s wife. Jacob is supposed to help train the elephant with Marlena’s help, although he refuses to use the violent measures that August proposes. Through their love of Rosie, Jacob and Marlena become closer in spite of August.

The plotline is interesting enough, much thanks to Gruen, and the film looked beautiful. The cinematography is awe-inspiring, while the gorgeous shots of the rising tent glamorize circus life.

The movie’s main problem comes with its acting, particularly Robert Pattinson’s portrayal of Jacob. After “Twilight” and its sequels, hopes for Pattinson were not very high. That said, the fact that he was cast in this movie would suggest that he had improved. Unfortunately, that is not the case. As would be expected, casting him was more of a publicity stunt than a comment on his acting. Throughout the film, Pattinson is stiff and unsympathetic, which leads to a flat portrayal of the circus vet.

Fortunately, Oscar-winning actor Christoph Waltz saves the film. His portrayal of the aggressive and disturbed circus director is chilling. Without him, the film would have very little to keep its audiences interested. While Witherspoon also manages to keep viewers engaged, her performance is not anything worth celebrating.

Overall, “Water for Elephants” is a fine, entertaining film. The cinematography is beautiful, the plot is engaging, the elephant is cute and Waltz gives a noteworthy performance. That said, the film is uninspiring. Pattinson’s stiff performance as the main character brings down the quality of the film. Pattinson should stick to fighting vampires and werewolves and leave the acting to more skilled professionals.

Courtesy of VH1

VH1’s new show Audrina follows the life of Audrina Patridge (center) and her family. Audrina airs Sunday nights at 8 p.m. CST on VH1.

“Audrina” chronicles the life of the “celebrity” and her family, which consists of her parents, her two sisters and her brother. The show’s first episode attempts to characterize each of the family members in its short 20 minutes. Audrina’s father is the levelheaded one of the family, while her mother is out of control and overbearing. Her sister Casey is rebellious and always speaks her mind, while her youngest sibling Samantha is trapped alone in her parents’ house. Her brother Marky is shown as being easy-going and just looking for a party. In other words, they all seem pretty one-dimensional.

Dysfunctional families always make for good reality television, especially when one of the family members is already an established reality star. Unfortunately, “Audrina” does not follow this stereotype. It’s fair to say that most of the viewers tuning in to watch the Patridge family will be previous viewers of “Laguna Beach,” “The Hills” and “The City.” Those viewers will be unconditionally disappointed.

Audrina’s family members don’t have the spark or the draw of LC, Kristin, Brody, Speidi or even Whitney. It is hard for anyone to care that Audrina calls her mother, Lynne Patridge, old. None of the Patridges are sympathetic or attractive characters, so there is really no reason to watch them. On top of it all, the visual style and editing throughout the show are extremely boring and typical. Missing are the scenic shots and flashy editing found in any of the show’s predecessors.

It’s really no wonder that MTV decided not to pick this up—the show is airing on VH1, despite “The Hills” airing on MTV. The characters are flat and uninteresting, the visual style is un-engaging and Audrina doesn’t have enough of a draw to bring and keep viewers glued to their TVs. “Audrina” is missing Adam DiVello (the producer of “The Hills”), the cattiness of LC and Kristin and, well, something to make people want to watch. In the theme song of “The Hills,” Natasha Bedingfield sang that “the rest is still unwritten.” Maybe we all would have been better off if it had stayed that way.