Real Women of Gaming

Mental health as a topic in horror is always interesting. Sometimes it is the cause of the horror. Sometimes it is what the horror latches onto, almost using it as a way into the story. Sometimes mental health is a smokescreen, something that horror hides behind to do damage. The use of mental health adds layers to any horror story. It can also add to the discomfort of those watching. 

March of 2025 gave horror fans a new movie with The Woman in the Yard. There was excitement for a movie that had a fresh premise. The trailer added to the mystery as it didn’t spoil much of the movie. A great movie for a time when trailers give away not only most of the plot but many of the best parts of the movie before it has even been released. 

Ramona is a grieving widow in a remote farmhouse with her two children. She grows more and more depressed as she struggles with internal and external injuries. Her children are also struggling to adjust to their new normal. Without their father repairs on the house have stopped, and Ramona’s depression makes it difficult for her to help. One morning a mysterious woman appears in their yard, just sitting, in older mourning clothing. As the day goes on her presence becomes more menacing. Can this broken family band together to protect themselves from her darkness? 

The music in The Woman in the Yard is woven throughout the movie, helping the story along. It does a lot of heavy lifting to cue the audience in on the emotions of each scene. The threat of the Woman, as well as the state of the family themselves are told through musical arrangements that add to the feeling of fear. Lighting is a key part of the setting: the dark of Ramona’s depression and the shadow of the Woman stretching over the farm. The setting of a remote farmhouse adds to the anxiety of the story. How can you get help when you are so far away from your closest neighbor? I feel like this is a part of rural horror that is the most scary, and I am glad it was utilized so well in this movie. 

Costumes also played a big part of the story. Ramona wearing the same clothes she slept in cues the audience to how bad the depression she is battling is for her. The old wardrobe of the Woman let us know she is out of place. She is not of this era or this society in a way we would expect. It easily paints her as an “other.” 

The Woman in the Yard takes great pains to weave together elements that make the movie start off as very ordinary and build to very scary. That decision, to go from a very typical day for family trying to find their footing to a battlefield is an effective one, as is the use of deteriorating mental health as a part of the supernatural. I am still not sure what is real or not about the movie. That is due to a well shot, written, and acted film.

I am still unsure if I would recommend The Woman in the Yard. I think it could be a difficult, and triggering movie for those who are really struggling if they walk into it blind. I highly recommend reading all trigger warnings, even the spoilers, if your mental health is in a dark place before you watch. Or get someone you trust who understands your struggles and have them watch it first for you. I think it was very well done. I think it is a story that needs to be told. I just want viewers to proceed with caution before viewing. 

ALWAYS KEEP SPARKLING!!!