Adapted from a Peter Straub novel this is an intelligent, slow-moving but eminently effective ghost story built around the pain of grief and loss. Director Richard Loncraine avoids obvious scares, concentrating instead on the slow accumulation of eerie atmosphere, before delivering a devastating final five minutes. The acting is good throughout; the camerawork by Peter Hannan is subtle (if a touch over gauzy at times) and Colin Towns delivers an appropriately spooky piano score. An effective and subtle old-fashioned ghost story - with a devastating conclusion! ( )