British ghost stories are nothing new, but ones that are well done are actually kind of exceptional. Perhaps it’s the atmosphere that comes from a chilly English home, or maybe it’s even the accents — either way, they’re great. The next installment in this subgenre that I’ve essentially made up over the past fifty-three words is The Awakening, which serves as the directorial debut of Nick Murphy. It also has a wonderful cast, which is led by Rebecca Hall, Dominic West, and Imelda Staunton.

We now have a trailer for the film, after it played at Toronto this week to very positive notices. Most noticeably, the footage makes it look like an entertaining, slightly spooky take on a story that may not be all so original itself. But the execution is what really matters, and that seems to be done properly; in all honesty, this looks like it could be pretty fun. It’s a good thing that Cohen Media Group will be bringing it to the U.S. at some point in the near future, since I hope to check it out when I get the chance.

Watch it below, thanks to The Guardian (via ThePlaylist):

Synopsis: Haunted by the death of her fiancé, Florence Cathcart is on a mission to expose all séances as exploitative shams. However, when she is called to a boys’ boarding school to investigate a case of the uncanny, she is gradually forced to confront her skepticism in the most terrifying way, shaking her scientific convictions and her sense of self to the very core. Haunting and moving in equal measure, The Awakening is a sophisticated psychological/supernatural thriller in the tradition of The Others and The Orphanage, but with its own unique and thrilling twist.

Are you intrigued by this trailer? Does it look like a good thriller?