Being the girl who was scared at Scream 3, a film described as the most gut-wrenchingly terrifying horror film of all time did not really appeal! Apparently, Ring (the Japanese name is Ringu, which translates into Ring) was so frightening that cinema-goers cried and vomited in the aisles, and ... Read review
A review by JessL on Ringu (1998) November 5th, 2003
Author's product rating:
Did you enjoy it?
Liked it
Story
Outstanding
Characters / Performances
Outstanding
Special Effects
Good
How does it compare to similar films?
Outstanding
Advantages:
Much scarier than most horror films
Disadvantages:
Doesn't live up to the hype, confusing
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Being the girl who was scared at Scream 3, a film described as the most gut-wrenchingly terrifying horror film of all time did not really appeal! Apparently, Ring (the Japanese name is Ringu, which translates into Ring) was so frightening that cinema-goers cried and vomited in the aisles, and a few reportedly DIED of shock. You can imagine how wary I was of this film, but I decided to throw caution to the wind and watch it (very daring for me! =P)!
Asakawa Reiko is a reporter investigating an urban myth about a mysterious video, which will supposedly cause the death of the viewer exactly seven days after watching it. The story also has a personal twist, as her niece supposedly watched the video with her boyfriend and two other friends, and all died exactly a week later, with a terrified look on their faces.
She tracks down the video, and foolishly enough, watches it. The video contains a series of disjointed, unnerving images, including a young child with her long black hair swept over her face, who turns out to be the key in this mystery. She was a young girl called Sadako, who had supernatural, evil abilities, and disappeared without trace after her psychic mother killed herself.
Soon after watching the video, Asakawa receives a mysterious, blank phone call (the whispered 'Seven days...' associated with The Ring is an addition to the remake, and is not on the original). All her cynical misgivings vanished, she makes a copy of the video, and enlists the help of her psychic ex-husband, Takayama. She has seven days to unravel the mystery, but when her son secretly watches it, getting to the bottom of the mystery is even more necessary, for the sake of her son, Yoichi.
The foundations of the film are laid down very slowly, so if you prefer slasher flicks that get the killings over and done with in the space of five minutes, this isn't for you! The slow pace of the film in the beginning adds to the tension and worry, which builds up in you slowly, without you realising, until you notice you are holding your breath and your knuckles are white from clutching the nearest object at hand!
The film is indeed, frightening. It isn't so scary that it causes deaths, as the Asian press reported, but I can see how much more frightening it could be if watched in a dark cinema. Being a film of a psychological nature, there's no blood and guts, but this is far scarier than any slasher flick could manage. The film is confusing and mysterious, and most of the fear you feel is the product of your own imagination. Which I think is far worse than any temporary paranoia you experience after watching Scream or Final Destination!
As a whole, the acting seemed good, but I have a limited view of this because the acting is in Japanese. Rikiya Otaka, who played Yoichi, in particular, was excellent - most kids in horror films are precocious and irritating, but he did a great job. He played the independent little boy who has inherited his father's psychic powers, and can communicate with his dead cousin, perfectly. He has very little part in the film though, and is not as prominent as the little boy in The Ring.
Being set in Japan, you might expect to see lots of bright lights and busy streets in the film, but the bleak, barren views and grey overcast, along with the arty camera-work create a strange, unworldly atmosphere. Also worth a mention is the creepy music, which appears unexpectedly, making you jump out of your seat. They really complements the scenes, adding to the tension.
As the pieces of the jigsaw fit into place, and you THINK the whole nightmare is over, something truly horrifying happens, which throws you into doubt once again! This scene, near the end, was genuinely frightening and I found myself screaming in shock when I noticed it happening (you'll understand if you see the film!). Despite the fact I have seen the English-language remake, I was shocked, as that particular scene is filmed quite differently.
Most of the horror stems from your own overworked imagination, and I feel the film is more of a scary, disturbing psychological thriller than an outright horror film. You are frightened by the possibilties, unanswered questions and potential situations (!) rather than what you actually see on screen. In fact, I think a 20 year-old is more likely to be frightened than a 7 year-old, as a 20 year-old will have a much more active imagination!
It is quite confusing, but if you persevere with the film, everything slots into place. The grainy flashbacks, which seemingly are unrelated to the film, add to the confusion, but as Asakawa uncovers the mystery, they start to slot into place and you suddenly find it all makes sense!
The nature of the film being what it is, there are no gruesome pictures of any kind, although I do think that the film isn't suitable for everyone. I'm a complete wimp when it comes to this sort of thing, but I found it extremely disturbing rather than terrifying.
I did enjoy it, but I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed. Maybe it's because I watched it first, but I found the remake much scarier, and is less confusing. However, Ringu is still a great film - just not as scary as expected, and is very confusing.
It is worth a watch, although don't be surprised if your nerves are ripped to shreds and you suddenly become very suspicious of unmarked videos and girls with long, black hair!
Obviously, Ringu is made in Japanese, but that's what the subtitles are there for, and you shouldn't have any problem understanding the plot. Don't let the subtitles put you off, as you get used to them very quickly, and watching it is the same as watching an English film after ten minutes or so.
In Ringu, we do get to see why Sadako hid her face behind her hair - don't be fooled into thinking she has a normal, if ghostly pale face, like Samara, her counterpart in The Ring! I felt the film would have been better if we didn't see her face, as I got an irrepressible, inappropiate urge to giggle! If you are interested to see what she looks like, go to google.com and type in "ring film" into the Images section - you'll laugh, I promise!
All in all, this is a well-acted film that fulfils it's purpose - to scare the hell out of the viewers! It doesn't live up to the hype, but what film does? It's not for everyone, but if you like psychological thrillers, then give this a go. What's the worse that could happen...?
It's a film that has spanned various sequels and prequels that delve deeper into Sadako's past, and there's even a Korean remake, but apparently they aren't very good. The films are based on the books, which are a trilogy. Even if you have seen The Ring and enjoyed it, watch Ringu if you can, as they are very different films.
A few quick facts for you - this was made with £1 million, which is quite something! To put that into perspective, Kill Bill supposedly ran £20 million over budget! Also, the video's contents are actually Sadako's thoughts - and the man with the white cover over his head is a vision of Takayama.
(The title comes from a trailer I saw for Scary Movie 3! It was all I could think of!)
Advantages: Creepy, psychological horror. Disadvantages: Hate subtitles? You'll hate this.
...few other Ring movies – Ringu 2 (apparently crap), Ringu 0 – a prequel (again – not so good, they say), Rasen – a sub-sequel that was made at the same time as Ringu – and scoffed on by Ringu purists. Finally there’s Ring Virus – a virtual remake from Korea. Phew! Most hardcore Ringu fans dislike this version, though it does include more elements from the novel (part one of a trilogy itself) than Ringu does. ... ...but there still isn;t one. This may be the USA remake’s only saving grace - if it stinks, at least the novels may well fare better! If you’re after a surreal thriller, this is probably going to be right up your alley. The fine little touches of scaryness build to a crawl-into-the-corner-and-hide climax, the imagery is rich (important in a subtitled movie!) and the score minimal and non-intrusive. If you hold no truck with “oh yeah, ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Brilliant acting, well written script. Disadvantages: Bad subtitles
It’s a familiar story, I’m sure we all know it well now. Someone makes a really good, if low budget, movie. The film probably never does particularly well, but everyone who does watch it thinks its great. Then along comes Hollywood, and before you know it, it’s a really crap re-make, which makes a whole load of money, but has little or no integrity. Know what I’m talking about? *cough* The Haunting, Psycho etc *cough*
Well, the plus side of this ... ...destroyed it, only just mind you, as ‘The Ring’ is due out sometime soon. The Original film ‘Ringu’ (made in 1998), a low budget Japanese film by Hideo Nakata is a brilliant film, and I’m so glad I got to see it before the re-make was thrust upon me.
So, after such a long intro, what is this all about? Well, as I mention above, this film is Japanese, and as such I should point out that it is subtitled, and badly at that, sometimes the background ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Scary, in the old fashioned sense Disadvantages: Subtitles and Asian style storytelling
Horror films seem to be getting worse these days. Ok, so it’s a sweeping statement but the world of horror in director and screenwriter’s eyes these days seems to be made up of quick jumps and lots of blood. This, in my humble opinion, is what’s known as a ‘bad move’. I was reminded about this the other day when I had a chance to catch the showing of Ring and Ring 2 on Channel 4 over the last week. The first of these ... ...films of all time and its utter lack of reliance on blood and ‘jump’ scenes is a fresh and welcome experience.
Ring is a Japanese film by director Nakata Hideo and written by Takahashi Hiroshi. It is actually based on a famous book by Suzuki Koji, still unavailable in an English language translated version (this is apparently in progress though). It concerns an unmarked videotape which when watched can cause the viewer to die exactly ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: It'll scare ya Disadvantages: You might not like that...and its subtitled
It has been a while since I watched a horror movie which actually managed to freak me out. Western horror movies seemed to go through a stage of either being ultra gory(before being clamped down on), then slipping into self-parody and have now spun full circle back to the old, tired slasher movie genre which has even made someone believe the 9th sequel to Friday the 13th was a great idea(it wasn't - arrgh!). Hollywood seems almost completely devoid ... ...content with picking over the bones of past successes and parodying its own inadequacies, going for the cheap shock tactic as opposed to truly unnerving the audience and leaving behind that lingering sense of foreboding and "what if..." long after the credits roll. It is little surprise then that the best horror movie(or more appropriately: ghost story) for ages doesn't come from Hollywood, or even the West, but instead from the Japanese. I'm sure ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
...toes,alert and guessing.Unlike THE RING, Ringu avoids cheap scares.No chasing,no bathtub electrocutions, no gore, no physical battles and no mad suicidal horses in this version.
While the remake was big on swish camera action, strange noises, and scary psychiatric assemssment videos, Ringu is much more simple, streamlined and uncluttered.The tape in the original is shorter than in the remake, with much less yuck in it. No fingers pierced on nails, ... ...more believeable. But RINGU is not without it's flaws. Not so much the movie itself, but in the subtitling. White subtitles on top of Matsushima white clad bosom? It may be a nice bosom indeed, but for five minutes I had no idea what she was saying!
RINGU is a far superior horror/psychological thriller than the ring, for all the reasons above. The casting shines, the acting is believable, and the tension is palpable.Definately well worth the watch.
...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Gory, original storyline, good ending Disadvantages: over-exaggerated in parts, long duration
...'The Ring' is an English version of the Japanese 'Ringu'(1998). Basically about a cursed video tape which, when watched will make you die in 7 days. A good film in the beginning and quite frightening ( i had to turn my face away a couple of times)However, it lapses in the middle! It becomes quite exaggerated - especially the horse scene on the boat!!
Its quite a complex storyline - i became quite confused in some parts cos not everything is explained - it leaves it to the imagination.
The little boy in the film is similar to an imitation of the boy in 'The Six Sense'- which is not a particularly good thing at all!
It is a gory film, but all of the good parts were shown in the trailer of the film ,therefore there wer'nt many suprises in the film
The worst part of the film has to be when the girl at the beginning of the film dies...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful
Advantages: A couple of scenes with good tension. Disadvantages: Hollywood turkey. C.G.I ride. Bland actors. Boring. Clichéd.
...Poseidon was released sometime in May 2006 and was directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the same guy who directed The Perfect Storm (2000), Das Boot (1981) and most notably, the Never-ending Story (1984). It is the remake of the 1972 classic, The Poseidon Adventure.
When the Americans are not busy spoiling foreign films by remaking them, such as Ringu (Hideo Nakata, 1998) for example, they release huge 150-160 million budget films, all sketched in the same manner, just in order to please the casual viewer.
Sometimes, big budgets can produce some great material... but nine times out of ten, it results in a turkey.
Poseidon is one of those turkeys.
It is not as bad as James Cameron's Titanic, but it comes close...
The first thing that struck me was the blandness of Klaus Badelt's soundtrack. Here, we are far from a subtle Jerry...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Complicated, fantastic story line Disadvantages: Crappy special features.
....
'The Ring', is directed by Gore Verbinski, and stars Naomi Watts as Rachel Keller, a journalist who travels to the Pacific Northwest to investigate the mysterious death of her niece after watching a video tape.
Its the English language remake of the highly acclaimed Japanese horror film 'Ringu' (1998) based on Koji Suzuki's popular novel.
The videotape is full of eerie images. Once you watch the video the screen goes blank and the phone rings. When you pick up the phone an eerie voice says "seven days". Seven days later the viewer will spontaneously die. Some notable highlights of the video are:
- the reflection of a woman brushing her hair in the mirror.
- a chair spinning upside down.
- a ladder in the middle of nowhere.
- a nail piercing through a finger.
- a centipede.
- something that looks like a string or intestines...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
This product has not yet been reviewed. 
03.03.2003
02.12.2004
