The Woman in Black: Angel of Death 2014

Sara Stewart, New York Post: The transparent title character from 2012's "The Woman in Black" is resurrected in this sequel, which abandons atmosphere for cheap scares. Read more

Scott Foundas, Variety: A handsomely made but dramatically inert and not very scary sequel to 2012's surprise-hit ($127 million worldwide) Edwardian chiller. Read more

Jesse Hassenger, AV Club: Redundancy is about all it offers, despite an entirely new set of characters and a story set 40 years after the early 20th-century original. Read more

Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader: Director Tom Harper conveys this theme through dark, moldy-looking mise-en-scene and the uniformly sullen performances he elicits from the cast; you're more likely to find this depressing than scary. Read more

Kyle Anderson, Entertainment Weekly: The Woman may be back for another fright, but Angel of Death doesn't haunt like it should. Read more

Justin Lowe, Hollywood Reporter: The material feels stale from nearly the first scene featuring the threatening old manse. Read more

Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death is an improvement on its predecessor. That said, the new installment is, at best, a serviceable creep show, one with far more chills than thrills. Read more

Jordan Hoffman, New York Daily News: The 1940s setting gives the film's first half some unearned gravity, but by the end the jump-scares and rote plot frightens away the good will. Read more

Ben Kenigsberg, New York Times: The director, Tom Harper, seems less interested in allegory than in monotonous, conventional goosing, the kind that involves flickering lights and a creaky rocking chair. Read more

Bruce Demara, Toronto Star: She's back, the Woman in Black, and it does give one pause to wonder if it's for no better reason than to scare up some more box office lucre. Read more

Alonso Duralde, TheWrap: Director Tom Harper and screenwriter Jon Croker offer up plenty of atmosphere, but every good idea this sequel has to offer winds up taking a backseat to the most obvious cat-in-the-closet "BOO!" moments imaginable. Read more

Tom Huddleston, Time Out: Predictable shock tactics, drippy wartime romance and scenes in which the characters leaf tremulously through Victorian photo albums and spout exposition. Read more

Bruce Kirkland, Toronto Sun: The sequel is about as far from the original source as you can get while still using the title, The Woman in Black. It is just as far away from being interesting. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: It's mostly deadly dull, and when it does liven up a tad, the haunted house tale offers only wan shock tactics. Read more

Simon Abrams, Village Voice: Flawed but genuinely creepy ghost story The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death is disappointing, but only because it comes close to greatness. Read more

Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture: It's a dour, drab, dark movie, enlivened by some moderately effective chills in the first half but ultimately undone by its downbeat aimlessness. Read more