I hesitated when Ms. Spenser suggested we watch Ringu (1998). I was under the impression that it was gory, violent, and slasher-ish. A review mentioned something like "inventive kills" - not our thing in general. But I queued it up anyway - and found that I was wrong.
It starts with a bunch of kids at a sleepover talking about an urban legend: if you watch a creepy videotape, you get a phone call, then die one week later. One girl mentions that she actually had watched a video like that about a week ago, and of course, she dies (quietly).
Her aunt, Matsushima Nanako-san, finds out that three other kids died at the same time as her niece. She also hears about the urban legend from some schoolkids. So she starts to investigate. She figures out where the kids were staying in Oshima, and heads up there. She finds an unmarked tape and watches it. Then the phone rings. Now, she realizes, she is cursed. She has one week to live.
She calls in her ex-husband, Sanada Hiroyuki-san, to help. She reluctantly let's him watch a copy of the tape, and he finds a few more clues. Unfortunately, late one night Matsushima-san finds her young son watching the tape. Now he is cursed as well. That really ups the stakes.
So, instead of being a bloodbath, this is a supernatural tension-fest. The deaths are all or mostly quiet or off-screen. The monster, when finally discovered, is pretty creepy (OK, it's the girl with the hair over her face - we've all seen stills at least). And there are a few scares. But mostly it's just tension and fear. The first section has a lot of teens discussing urban legends, which has a bit of a social media feel - quite modern. In fact, it seems that the modern/ancient dichotomy is driving this movie.
But I was just glad it wasn't more traumatic.
1 comment:
The American remake was one of the scariest movies I ever saw. I have it in my DVD library.
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