Somehow, though, these elements, cobbled together in The Grudge (Sony/Universal Studio's American remake of Japanese horror director Takashi Shimizu's Ju-on: The Grudge), are unspeakably frightening. Even more so for North American audiences who have no idea what they're watching, and even less idea what the hell to do with it. Happy Halloween, people.

Thirty-two-year-old Shimizu was already a celebrity in the Japanese horror scene when Sam Raimi decided to remake his original Ju-on, which spawned a series in Japan, for the American multiplex. Luckily, Raimi - the cult-hero trash auteur behind such disparate Hollywood artefacts as The Evil Dead and the Spider-Man franchise - knows not to mess with a good thing. Shimizu's Hollywood mission? To evolve the movie just enough to sell to homegrown thrill seekers, with lip service to the expository narrative logic that we bank on, but otherwise to make the same movie again. Without CGI. And in Japan, with a Japanese crew, then taking it to California for post-production. He was to keep the mood, the look, the rhythms, the weird sounds and the lingering stench of evil, and to throw in an American starlet to be scared on screen by the same stuff that's scaring us. And the little ghost boy who mewls like a cat was to stay, because it's really scary.

"When Rob [Tapert, Raimi's producing partner] and I saw Ju-on, we thought it was brilliant," says Raimi. "Our job was to change as little as possible while making it acceptable to American and Canadian audiences. Though we have the best movie technicians in [the States], the Japanese now have the best horror ideas in the world. We thought we would combine the best of both worlds, without fouling the original from the beautiful origami piece that it was."

The resulting nouveau-horror artefact could, hopefully, break ground for a new genre of horror movie: a Lost in Translation-type fish-out-of-water story with appeal that extends beyond the art house and into the imagination of your average moviegoer. A new style of horror flick that disquiets from inside instead of peddling blood-and-gore shock-rock like the usual Freddy or Jason sequels.

For Raimi, the key to this new flavour of horror was to hire Shimizu himself to remake his own story, and keep it real - or, at least, really, really weird.

"Shimizu works with the story with his own ideas. For instance, he believes that this evil is timeless," says Raimi. "It doesn't move in a linear way.

"I think he has given us what the old-fashioned horror filmmakers used to give us - just some room to use our brains. He demands that you provide your own answers and makes you become involved. And that causes discussion, and it plays on our fear of the dark - what's out there?"

Shimizu's out there

Takashi Shimizu is a film director of varied talents and interests beyond the Grudge proto-franchise. In fact, his recent experimental socio-politico-pornographic adventure Marebito is showing at the Festival du nouveau cinéma on the same weekend as The Grudge hits wide release.

"[Marebito] was one of those low-budget experimental things, which I was allowed to do but with a [total] shooting budget that was not as much as my pay for remaking The Grudge," says the director. "We were shooting eight days, and I thought, I can shoot that in Japan, and go back to America to do post on The Grudge. That film, though, was invited to a whole lot of festivals I could not go to because of working on The Grudge."

Marebito is, among other things, a rewarding ticket for anyone who got off on Freeze Me or Audition at past Fantasia festival screenings (in fact, famed Japanese actor/singer Ryo Ishibashi, Audition's leading man/victim, has a role in The Grudge as a doomed Tokyo policeman).

Meanwhile, Shimizu, to date, has directed four permutations of The Grudge in Japan, as well as the American remake.

"I did not want to do the remake, at first," he says. "The main reason I did it was my [admiration] for Sam. He asked me to please bring in a Japanese taste, and that seemed like a great challenge, so I decided to do it.

"But once we started to actually make the movie, the producers started to contradict each other. Some said that so many things in the original worked so well, but they seemed not to believe it would [translate] to something Americans could watch."

Buffy says what?

The Grudge is fairly simple, and similar to the original. (For the purpose of comparison, Cinéma du Parc is graciously playing the original Ju-on in congruence with the wide release of the remake.)

An ordinary house in Tokyo retains lingering badness (the titular grudge) because of a malevolent murder/suicide that happened years ago. Anyone who enters the house - namely Sarah Michelle Gellar (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame) and her boyfriend Jason Behr (the hottie from Roswell) - are torturously pursued by otherworldly presences that mean them ill.

Of course, the main draw - and the box-office bet - for The Grudge is Gellar's enthusiastic participation; she accepted the role as a rare film gig to punctuate her tenure as the title character on TV's long-running Buffy.

"I love to travel more than anything, and when I found out we were filming in Japan, I was [sold]," she says. "For one thing, I love Japanese movies... I think everyone has one place they want to go more than anything, and I loved everything about Japan. The food, the alcohol, the movies, the culture. I love the culture because it is so much about respect. How everyone... takes their shoes off, and says thank you, and is really respectful of one another."

Gellar plays the most prominent victim of the vengeful ghosts with so much vulnerability and intrepidity that, in the weeks after Psycho star Janet Leigh's death, her performance is almost a homage.

For Gellar, the Japanese-style requirements of Raimi and Shimizu's modus operandi was sometimes an experience in faux vérité: The shower scene (already famous from the memorable trailer) was shot over seven and a half hours with full crew and no CGI in "a really cold shower, with 14 modest Japanese male crew members who were equally uncomfortable, and one actress's poor hand."

Gellar and Behr were also privy to Japanese rituals on set:

"The amazing thing was they started the shoot with a purification ceremony, which is traditional in Japan whenever there's a movie that has to do with spirits or ghosts," she recounts. "They brought in a monk to bless everybody, and I was scared. Then I had to get up and do these things like clap and [make offerings] and it was, well, to me, similar to the hokey-pokey... but more spiritual. It was a beautiful ceremony, and at the end we had to drink sake. Even the Sony executives had to do it. Any ceremony that requires us to drink alcohol at 11 in the morning, well, I'm all for it! It was the best experience I ever had working, and I hope this is a chance to get American audiences more in tune with Japanese movies."

For all the cross-cultural warm fuzzies, The Grudge produces a thoroughly disconcerting, unpleasant horror experience for the Western moviegoer. In other words, we get our money's worth.

For the fan-boys, as a bonus, Gellar responded to a request to list her favourite of all the "really great" Japanese movies she loves:

"I saw Hero at least two years ago, and it was the most aesthetically amazing movie I had ever seen... and there's a great movie called Shaolin Soccer that just disappeared out here."

Well, at least they're from the same continent.

The Grudge
Ju-on: The Grudge
Cinéma du Parc, Oct. 26 to Nov. 6
Marebito
At the Festival du nouveau cinéma , Oct. 22, 11:30 p.m.
 
 

		Write your comment on this article!

Gellar is less than Stellar.............................     I guess I'm not as easily scared as I used to be as a kid...The Grudge is the kind of daring scare movie I would have tried to sneak in to watch many years ago. I recently saw it with my kids and have to admit, I am curious how Buffy got involved in this film noir? Was she travelling in Japan at the time and some producer said: "Hey, you Guffy-You rant to be in my Horrywood mooby, I pay you rots of money"...Seriously, it was weird seeing Sarah and Bill Pullman in a movie that clearly they didn't belong in..but were cast so that, I guess, It would be a name that Americans would recognize (as I did) and want to buy a ticket to go see (which I did)....so it was a smart move to put her in...so much for "carefully selected cast".....I kept looking for Freddie Prince Jr to be hiding in the attic or in the car engine or getting Japanese tutoring in the office that Gellar worked out of.......but sadly, Freddie was to be found................... (I know, I know-based on a Japanese movie of the same name that set Japanese movie-goers agog when the whole thing was originally made and screened for their brand of horror). Some people haven't figured out who had The Grudge? and what the whole movie was about, but personally, I don't really care. I thought the use of a comb in the mouth to make the horrible :"eheheheheheheheh" sound was brilliant, good use of a black cat to create tension, good use of a Japanese frameless bed to put the possessed granny, good use of makeup to make the little kid look like Linda Blair's nephew and finally-how many scenes can you film in the same house? Small budget, big fright and lousy script. Can you spell B movie? Can you smell SAKE burning? Can you tell Gellar didn't have a clue what her director was asking her to do? Can you sell Japanese horror to filthy-rich American audience? ..........Arigato Gozaimasu.................Thank you very much
Steve Landry	{4 votes}	January 31st, 2005
Not just a scary movie     I have to say that I am a horror/pyschological fear movie enthusiast. I have practically seen all the scary movies that one could name and my favourite include The Ring, The Others, Poltergeist and The Exorcist. When I went to see this movie I was looking for another movie along the same lines as the Ring, a movie that would get my blood pumping and I give me goosebumps (I love that). But, the minute that I saw the movie, everything I thought about the movie changed. The movie was truly terrifying. First of all, the cast was amazing. Sarah Michelle Gellar and her boyfriend were perfect as the typical Americans in a foreign cities. But, by far my favourite character was the little Japanese child who would the creepy croaking noise with his voice. He completely terrified me. Everything in the movie was amazingly done, the plot the sub-plot and especially the tiny little things that will get to you, just as you're about to fall asleep. The graphic images were HORRIFYING, honestly I was so scared. For example, the jaw scene was simply SO good. Anyways, what I wanted to say was that this movie is honestly the best scary movie that I've ever seen. Even today, I still get scared whenever I get in the shower or go down stairs in the dark. I look forward to watching this movie over and over again whenever I feel like a good scare. The only thing that disappoints was that I was too scared to keep my eyes open for the last scene! Oh well, another reason to watch it again. Congratulations to the Japanese for serving up such a great film.
Em Hutchison	{3 votes}	January 7th, 2005
The Grudge : we should call it a "Ramen Horror" movie     When Sergio Leone started making Italian Western movies, they dubbed this new style «Spaghetti Western». Now it seems that Americans are making horror flicks based on Japanese movies such as "Ringu" or "Ju-on". I suggest that we should call this new style "Ramen Horror" movies. ++++++++ I think this term conveys what ideas come to my mind when I watch those movies. Their formula tries tell you that you are experiencing something typical that comes directly from the Far Eastern pop culture with all those symbols that come from Japanese folklore : grief-stricken ghosts, malevolent spirits that inhabit dark corners, the symbolism of natural elements (especially water) that are our friends but can become our foes. But just like "ramen" noodles, you end up with something that is too soft, has no specific taste since it always follows the same recipe, and doesn't fill you up. First of all, the scary elements of this movie are just like "ramen' noodles : they are too soft. Of course, we have grown used to excessive violence when it comes to horror movies. But when the only things that are supposed to make you jump from your seat are a floating woman's head with an abundant mane of black hair, a dark face with a set of eyes that stare directly at you, a young boy who cries making feline screeches, and finally a music score that is too present and makes surprise elements predictable, you are not in for a heart attack. In fact, "The Grudge" seems to follow the same recipe that made "The Ring" a success. But this doesn't mean that it leaves a lasting impression on the viewer. And finally, the movie is only 90 minutes long. Such a short movie -like a serving of "ramen"- might leave some viewers wanting for something more.
Sylvain Provost	{24 votes}	November 1st, 2004
Stereotypical, yet very frightening     The Grudge debuted at number one this past weekend at the box-office cashing in close to 40 million dollars, which makes it one of the strongest entry revenue of the year so far. Is it worthy of such a warm welcome ? Let's start by the negative aspects. This movie is the latest of a long series of american remakes of foreign box office hits. It is therefore adapted to the market of young adults and teens that are suckers for stories about ghouls and goblins. Add to the mix a very en vogue actress in Sarah Michelle Gellar, a has-been in Bill Pullman (has he even done a movie since Independance Day?) and you have a recipe for disaster, a horror flick in the purest tradidtion of all the Freddys, Jasons and Aliens of this world. Unoriginal to say the least. It's a shame that you can't see a horror movie nowadays that is based on a good psychological plot. Let's bring in the evil spirits and the monsters. However, with Sam Raimi involved in the project, the movie reaches peaks in tension, with an ambiant, moody setting, and an appropriate soundtrack. There is no problem here. The viewer will chew his nails off, even the most courageous one. Pretty difficult not to be sincere, and to not stay on the edge of your seat. It's the only comfortable way to watch this movie. Let's just say that we've seen better overall quality horror movies. But if we leave behind the obvious, which is that this movie is on our screens only for money purposes, we manage to leave frightened and relieved that it's all over in the end. Because you DO get a good scare.
Sebastien Behnan	{20 votes}	October 28th, 2004
Worth watching...but not in a good way     This movie did not seem scary to me at ALL. Maybe it's just because I didn't watch it in the theatres. My friend watched it in the theatres and she assured me that it was really frightening. But when I watched it on video at home with her, we both agreed that it was not as scary. I had only seen it that once, so I didn't know what to expect. I thought it would be terrifying, but I found myself laughing at each supposed horror scene. The noise this 'spirit' makes is also pretty funny. It sounds like the noise someone would make when they just get out of bed. If you want a laugh, instead of being scared to bits, I recommend you see this movie. You will be pissing your pants in no time.
Melissa Rideough		July 21st, 2005
The Grudge     If they had a slightly offensive I would have put that rather than average. however, this movie is something that I haven't seen in a long time. its scary. Not gory or even all that suspenseful, its just good old fashioned scary. however, along with scary comes some images that won't leave your head for a while. keep in mind that this is a ghost story, so if your looking for redeeming value, you aren't going to find to much. If you enjoy a good scare, and don't mind waiting through a few slow parts, see this one.
Covey Delaney	{23 votes}	January 13th, 2005
Brilliant movie.. the grudge!!!     This movie is a brilliant tale of suspense and horror the tale is creepy and hard to understand as far as the story unwinding. The tale is of a grudge laid upon all the people who come into contact with the house, the house is a resting place of murder where a man firstly killed his wife and then upon the story everyone who comes into the house is met by a dreadful fate of death the story is expressed through different views from different people so the story unwinds into a brilliant tale of horror and suspense the movie is better and a lot more detailed than the American remake. The movie I cannot explain in much detail without giving away the brilliance of the movie but all I can say is watch this film its brilliant and is a ten out of ten movie I enjoyed the film it is scary and not to high on gore which is good because it relies on suspense and is never short of a suspense filled moment.
Kingjames Manglo	{3 votes}	January 10th, 2005
Better luck next time     first off.. what is it with japan and wet ghost kids !??? anyways... Ju on was a downright creepy film and to remake it in america wouldnt work . This the producers knew so bring back the director and head back over seas and lets re do this , they said. Eu.. why ? can americans not read subtitles? ( dont answer that ) The best part about the remake is the fact that he gets to rework some camera shots and make them alot more interesting . The actors are good and they get into it as much as the original cast . But the scares arent there like in the original . Yes we jump due to a very effective score but since this version has to spell everything out for the audience instead of letting it roll like the original you loose the terror. Unlike the Ring which did successfully adapt to an american mentality, leaving the grudge with the asian train of though doesnt work . One plot point however, having buffy er i mean sarah be a foreigner doing the lost fish out of water thing does help to bring the audience in and give them a damn good try at relating to the character and creating a very good 'what would you do' feeling ( stuck in a horror movie where you can t understand the language is scary enough! ) it just doesnt seem to fully work though . Most definantly watchable but dont go into this thinking you wont be able to sleep at the end of the night and you may have a good time. If you arent scared of subtitles watch the more comprehensible original instead.
Eric Bellamy	{1 vote}	January 9th, 2005
Creepy     I saw both Versions of the film, the American remake and the Japanese original. There are good and bad things about both versions. I liked the story line better in the Japanese version, for me it seemed to flow better and make more sense. I understood things better at the end of the Japanese movie. They also go into more details about what happened to the woman in the house and how it is all connected. I liked the special effects in the American version are much better. The woman was really creepy, but I am a big chicken so maybe it was just me. For me that was the only plus of the American version had compared to the Japanese. They were both scary, both had a good story. The Creepiest thing for me was the fact that you could not get away from the ghost it would hunt you and find you no matter were your went, so you are never safe. That's what was really frightening about the whole movie Overall in my opinion the grudge is a really good movie no matter witch one you see. But the whole time I was watching it I could not stop thinking how similar it was to the ring.
Katya Whyte		December 8th, 2004
Scary ........NOT!!!!     If you are looking for a formulaic horror movie that goes for cheap scares than this is the movie for you. I was truly bored to tears. I did not find the movie scary and could not wait for it to end. I wonder if the original was better because the remake was awful. I know it did well at the box office and I can't understand why. I guess all the Buffy fans went out to support Sarah Michelle Gellar. She was okay but I just did not get it. They try to scare you by having things jump out at you and the storyline itself was lacking. If you haven't seen the movie yet wait till video. Not worth movie admission prices.
Selena Lobo	{2 votes}	November 29th, 2004
Way to go Gellar!     I am not usually a big fan of horror flicks, but there is something special about japanese horror films. They are based on such intriguing superstition, one just can not help but get hooked into watching them. There is also usually a lot less blood and gore in such films. Thus, a little more bearable to watch. I am however a huge fan of Sarah Michelle Gellar. I find her to be one of the most sassiest actresses in hollywood, she definitely has spunk. I have watched almost every episode of "buffy the vampire slayer" and I find that as an actress she excels in the supernatural field. Therefore, I went to watch "the grudge" with high expectations. I am happy to say that I was not disappointed. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. The special effects and the sound effects were truly frightening. Once again Sarah has rewarded us with exceptional acting.
Mahmuda Luba Nasrin		November 10th, 2004
Pleasantly Surprised     When I first saw previews for this new movie, The Grudge, I was a little bit taken back and comtemplated going to see it in thoughts that it would be somewhat like The Ring. Boy was I EVER wrong! This movie brought chills up my spine and butterflies in my stomach from beginning to end! There were so many gasps and screams throughout the audience and even I screamed once or twice! It was truly a terrifying ride straight from the start. It is now 2 weeks after I saw the movie, and I still have trouble sleeping in the dark in fear of seeing those 2 ghouls that haunted the mansion. All in all, I found this movie to be absolutely fantastic without any disappointment!
Michael Berthiaume		November 4th, 2004
as good as "The Ring"     This movie is better described as a suspense, although there are some gory images. There wasn't that much language or sexual content, but the images displayed in this film are very disturbing, and the feeling you get while watching the movie is like being stuck in a nightmare you cant get out of, it's very intense, but well worth it if you are into this kinda thing. There was none to say the least, just scares throughout the film. Frankly, I cowered in my seat several times. If you're looking for a good scare movie, "the Grudge" is one of your best choices.
Gael Fletcher	{11 votes}	November 2nd, 2004
About: Jumping Japanese!     Melora... you got to be kidding us, honey! That flick was scary for you?!!! It's kind of surprising that a actual Montreal movie reviewer would be scared by Takashi Shimizu's American adaptation of his quite frightening "Ju-On". Maybe audience member who are unaware of Japaneses' cinema now very vast horror filmatography would get something out of this contrive, midly entertaining fright-fest (a bunch of women actually voiced quite loudly their discomfort during the screening that I attend... Man, that's always funny to hear!) But, see, we're in Montreal, here - the town where FANTASIA was born. And, to anyone who goes annually to this can't-miss summer event, "The Grudge" will, at best, seem like déjà-vu, at worst, like a bad remake for us, stupid North-American audience. Furthermore, it's not even as good as "The Ring", the first US-remake of a horror flick mad in Japan - now, what's up with that? Ain't Sam Raimi himself behind this projet? Eh, folks: you'll need way more then just a bunch of gruesome looking ghosts and the standard "Boo! Oh, it's just a cat!" crap to get any Fantasia fan going. Shimizu is flawless as the director, but whoever is responsible for that dreadful script should be damned to eternal sufferings! And the casts, in all that? They pretty much have nothing to do - just stand there and be spooky, if you're a poltergeist, or just stand there and be terrorize, if you're a victim (Wow! Did we really need to go all the way to Japan to film that?!) You disappoint me yet again, Ms Koepke. Please, on your next text on Japaneses' horror, remember who you are writing your article for - this ain't Kansas up here, suga'! And, for anyone who like Fantasia, don't pass Go, don't collect your $200... there is absolutely nothing for you to see here.
Joseph Belizaire	{10 votes}	October 29th, 2004
Not For Movie Junkies I would Say!     It seems that SOME movie goers are not satisfied with this movie. Well its like drugs , your body gets use to the dose and then to get the effect you have to increase the dosage. You enter into the cinema with very high expectations and when you don't get your thrill you tear the movie down. Regardless to my previous comment , if you enter the cinema to watch the Grudge without any previous info you will enjoy it. You have to be open minded and objective about the info you read on the movie. We all have our likes and dislikes and why ruin it for somebody else. Not to mention that these people who make the comments do not pay for their tickets they go for free so they did not loose anything , but sometimes get greedy and very selective in their movie ratings. Takashi Shimizu is a great director with alot of imagination and very good special effects. He is know for his work and this is another example of his stuff. Sarah m. Geller is a young beautifull actress who has done a great performance in this movie . I will repeat it the same statement if you liked the Ring you will like this movie!
Maria Cecillia Silva	{7 votes}	October 27th, 2004
Too Bad     I was so dissapointed with "The Grudge" In my paper it advertised "if you liked the ring you will love The Grudge" Well that was awsome advertising. I was sold as soon as I read that, little did I know... This movie had all the classic hear noise investigate noise crap! I was ready to be so scared and all the movie did was dissapoint me. The ring gave me nightmares and this just gave me a jolt of the boo scares not something to think about later. my rating ** out of **** and the advertisement ****
Nathan Krantz	{9 votes}	October 26th, 2004
Only a few Jumpy parts     The movie was pretty slow but it had a few jumpy parts, the problem I had was that there were a slew of "kids" in the theater who, were either talking or yelping the whole time. It was so distracting that I couldn't concentrate and therefore wasn't "into" the movie. Why are kids allowed to infiltrate a movie theatre while they are waiting for "Shark Tale" to start? The movie wasn't worth the $$ that I had spent and would probably be more enjoyable at home on DVD, without the kids crying.....and another thing what was up with that woman who brought her six year old in to see the movie who was complaining loudly that he was scared and she never took him out? The trailers gave away most of the prime scare scenes and sarah michelle gellar wasn't exactly the best choice for the films lead, she made the movie almost unbearable.
Bee Sharma	{5 votes}	October 25th, 2004
The Point of a Remake     I can't believe people are complaining that it is too similar to the Japanese version. "What's the point?" they say... Well, the point is, not everyone wants to go see a subtitled movie. Yes, "Hero" did ok, but that's the exception, and not the rule. There is nothing wrong with taking a foreign movie, and adapting it (however slightly) to appeal to a different market. Picking the same director was smart... If it was too different, people would complain it wasn't true to the original. It's true to the original, and people still complain.
Eric Wilson	{7 votes}	October 25th, 2004
Could somebody PLEASE explain the logic behind this?     Let me see if I've got this straight. Sam Raimi gets Takashi Shimizu to remake his own movie with American actors replacing the Japanese ones in the original. WHAT IN THE BLOODY HELL IS THE POINT? Even ignoring the fact that the movie turned out terribly, is the North American filmgoing population really that lazy that they'd rather have a movie made TWICE than read subtitles? I mean, even spending a couple thousand on dubbing would be passable. This is a tragic example of the American media's idea that everything needs to be fed through the Americana filter in order for us to be able to chew and swallow. I can't believe that even with my feelings as they are, I still went to see that damn movie. The thought creates more shudders than the movie did.
Nathan Murray	{7 votes}	October 24th, 2004
Jaded Boyfriend Reviews: The Grudge     Noooooooooooooooooooo !!!!!!! Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo !!!! Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Why oh why oh why was it Kelly's turn to pick the movie ? Why why why why why ? Granted - the promo looked interesting and fun - and even creepy - but they usually do right ? I mean that's the point, at leats make it look interesting before you drop $ 10 on it. Usually the rule of thumb is" the better the promo, the worse the film is" - and for THE GRUDGE - the promo looked excellent, so I wasn't expecting much. If it was up to me - we would have gone to see ALIENS VS. PREDATOR at $ Cinema - but Kelly was begging me to see the grudge, so me being in love with her - I gave in .. it's what I do I guess. Went to SPHERETECH. Sat in a over-crowded theatre packed with goons. Sat behind a bunch of assholes - who had nothing better to do than talk the whole damn film ( next time boys, you are TOAST !! ). Movie started. 2 hours passed .... SLOWLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLY !!! What the hell happened ? I want my 2 hours back !!! Kelly, I love you baby, but that made absolutely no sense at all. I hate these so-called horror films, where they think by being vague, that they're being clever. Vague is vague, damn it - nothing else. And Kelly - no matter what you say - me MEOWING like that stupid kid-cat for 15 minutes after the film ended - instead of talking - really was funny - and not me being an arsehole like you said.
Rob Postuma	{10 votes}	October 24th, 2004
Horror Month!     I have seen nothing but good reviews for this film and it is the scariest filmto come out in theatres since "The Ring" gave us the willies. This is probablyeven scarier than watching a F.W. Murnau horror film. There is no doubt that I will take some time off in the next to weeks and watch this film. The Grudge hasan amazing director and that is why this film will be a huge hit. This is the perfect film for Halloween. You will be hearing plenty of screams in the theaters.
Carmela Sicurella	{8 votes}	October 23rd, 2004
Soulmates at work!     Sam Raimi working with an entirely Japanese crew to remake a Japanese horror film while being completely true to its orginal style? There must be some higher power at work here! Sam Raimi has been a god in my mind ever since I first saw Evil Dead. And if you don't already know - though I'm sure most of you do - the Japanese have become complete and utter masters of the horror genre. I do not have cable. I haven't seen the trailer for this film in the theatre. But I can declare with absolute confidence that I will see The Grudge, based on the two simple elements mentioned above - Sam Raimi + Japanese horror geniuses = a terrifyingly good time. It's simple mathematics. But the thought did cross my mind: what if The Grudge falls into the pit of so many remakes that, simply put, suck? I came to a clear conclusion. If this movie fails to scare and fails ot impress, then by our dear Raimi's talents alone, it will succeed in entertaining. Though Bruce Campbell may not be the star, Sarah Michelle Gellar does have a hefty CV of action-horror characters behind her, so I'd say she's mastered the genre by now. I suspect she'll be a strong lead. I haven't yet seen The Grudge nor Ju-On, but believe me, I will. Perhaps this will be my new The Ring and Ringu combination of love? Well. Those are high stakes. But if The Grudge even comes close, then damn, man, it'll be good. Maybe I should practice the between-the fingers "peeker effect" of movie-watching.
Lise Treutler	{15 votes}	October 22nd, 2004
Run of the Mill Horror Movie is Not Very Scary     Even though I am usually terrified at the idea of watching horror flicks, this movie surprisingly did not give me shivers down my spine. A better director would have used more refined techniques with sound and light to actually get shreaks from the audience. I never really did understand the purpose of these creatures and why innocent people were being killed. Murder suicides are not that uncommon. Understanding Japanese culture could have helped. It was interesting to have to wide range of interesting characters who appeared to be quite real. The language barrier in Japan reminded me a bit of the situation here in Quebec with tourists sometimes asking me to translate the unilingual parking signs. It is not a satisfying conclusion when everyone dies by the end of the movie. The main actress incredibly survived so many attempts on her life that I almost thought she had supernatural powers. There is usually some weakness that is discovered that is able to defeat these monsters. We will never know. Would burning down the house kill these evil creatures as was attempted in the film? More naive individuals will move into this haunted house and the killing will go on! I expect the good guys to win in the end. This movie was a bit of a letdown.
Stephen Talko	{8 votes}	October 22nd, 2004
...horror's long-awaited rebirth:     ...being an immense horror admirer since childhood - i am very glad for the re-birth of a genre that had gone the way of formulaic gyrations where pretty faced teens are plagued by summer camp curses and the obligatory and dull t and a moments that spawned franchises such as friday the 13th and i know what you did last summer where the subtext of these movies were the 'sins of youth' being punished by the aborted creations of g0d's divine wrath (...this of course would be fully realised in that mainstream snuff film by mel gibson called the passion but perhaps at another time i will discourse about that 'horror' film....) --- by-passing the remade ringu to watch the original ringu on dvd -- i was deeply impressed by the narrative of ringu that did not give away the moments with the usual camp of spooky musick crescending into the ever predictable scream of terror as the lurking creature stands readied to slaughter with his mighty weapon chosen by the movie execs to solicit the highest level of gross out factors and word of mouth to see such and such horror movie because it was sooo gross..... horror writer h.p. lovecraft understood that the horror tale was a story created to solicit our primal fears and recognition that we do not live in a world of rationalisations but we live within a world where irrationalities are the rule and that the impossible lurks and seeks vehicles of expression and manifestations into the 'real' world that deceives the senses eager to cling to pat rationalities as defined by state: church: and science -- as i am very interested in seeing the original ju-on: i am also led by curiousity to see the re-mixed version of the grudge by takashi shimizu with an eager understanding that after long years of franchised horror camp that reached the sewers with the g0d-awful scary movies parodies -- the genre of horror has returned at this very critical time to remind us to have the courage to see beyond our limited beliefs into the unknowns.
Gary Womac	{11 votes}	October 21st, 2004
Don't hold a grudge, just walk away.     I guess I really shouldn't have seen Ju-on before I saw this version. Ju-on was great from beginning to end but The Grudge is about as average as you can get in comparison. Whole bits were remixed to give the story a more American feel and it just bored me to death. This was almost as badly put together as Buffy Season 7 and that just sucked. I was there for the Montreal premiere at the Paramount where they completely messed up the projection. Bad experience all around.
Vladimir Joseph	{5 votes}	October 21st, 2004
THE GRUDGE suffers the curse of all Hollywood remakes: it's slick, formulaic and inferior     For the record, the HOUR's review for THE GRUDGE is utter garbage. I'm being diplomatic here as I know how the protective bubble goes up whenever I point my fangs too much and hit too close to home with that little thing I call objectivity and truth. Sorry but Melora Koepke's review just isn't worth the trees that were murdered for it to reach your local newstand. (By the way, HOUR censors I'm trashing her review and not her here so I'm well within my rights to spew some righteous venom and not have to worry about any silly red tape) Ok, so why is this review so bad? Well, it's not bad in of itself, it's well written and it's even got a coulple of neat interview snippets but it completely underrepresents the disappointing mishandling of the source material (the original JU-ON: THE GRUDGE) and waxes poetic about Takashi Shimizu (who unquestionably deserves the ink spilled on his behalf) but beautifully manages to not nail bastard responsible for turning the Hollywood remake of JU-ON into a bloody commercial cop-out: screenwriter Stephen Susco. Don't worry, the name won't ring a bell as he's done precious little before now and God willing he'll go back to doing just that. The Hollywood version of THE GRUDGE has got a gifted director at the helm and solid actors who hit their marks and deliver their material with aplomb but the material, or rather the commercial hackjob adaptation that was done on the original material is just insufferably disappointing. Screenwriter Stephen Susco managed to remove a good portion of the original material, alter the pacing, subtext and ending of the original creepfest so that Hollywood could have its formulaic Halloween investment. If you have a choice between watching JU-ON and its formulaic Hollywood counterpart then by all means choose the original. THE GRUDGE isn't so much bad as it is highly disappointing. Horror movies are suppose to leave chilling impressions not induce moments of boredom. Thus endeth my rant.
Pedro Eggers	{15 votes}	October 21st, 2004
THE GRUDGE IS FREKIN SCARY!!!!!!!!!     First of all, i watched the original version and that wasnt scary at all but the whole concept or the story line was scary!!! Now the American version is so scary that i couldnt even sleep for a week. The special effects realy scared me!!! but in the original the liitle boy there is scarier than the one in the US version. I think the Grudge is a realy good scare!!!!!!!
Kyle Vergara		March 3rd, 2006
Grudge     Plot wise it is your standard occult spiritualism with the restless, and murderous, spirit. The strength of the movie is in its directing which makes it effective. Some people in the audience were laughing at themselves for jumping out of their seats. After all, it is predictable, but it is also effective as a horror movie.
Brydon eleni		November 26th, 2004
Scary...huh     I didn't find it all the scary...just really jumpy. Slightly disappointed because I loved to get scared...what was creepier was halfway through the movie I remembered that my roommate is Korean and yeah...luckily she's not into the scary scene but there was great potential there. Anyway, that aside, a friend I went with was so scared...well, not scared I guess, she just jumped so hard that she through her thigh muscle out twice...So that made me laugh through the entire movie and look silly. With all of this side, I did love the movie.
Katie Flietstra		November 24th, 2004
I expected more     I have to say I expected more! In reality the movie wasn't even scary! The movie presents a more disturbing atmosphere, so those of you that are easily disturbed will probably be somehow scared...Anyways, in conclusion, I recommend renting the movie instead of wasting 10$.
Sophie Basque	{4 votes}	November 18th, 2004
Shall we dance     What a delightful film - Romantic, Sexy, and light. It is a film that is feel nice from beginning to end with Richard Geere. It is not a film where you have to think, be scared, cry, etc... I advise you to see it !
Aline Tombs		October 31st, 2004
The commercial is creepy     I looooooooove scary movies !!! Even watching the advertisement for this picture scares me .. What'S with this spooky kid. Well people I have not been but I suggest if you like scary movies GO GO GO !!! and don'T forget to leaves the lights on before you leave your appartment .. you might be a little scared!
Nathalie Verbruggen	{1 vote}	October 28th, 2004
If you want fame.......     Many people who work in the cinema or television, think: 'If you want fame in the cinema's world, American must love what you do. You need to work for Americans" It's sad! Many country lost good director and why? For the money and the celebrity. And I think, often the remakes are not betters but are bad. So good luck, directors who get new chance and I hope you will not forget your real passion, the passion for cinema. I hope this America version are good.
Monica Meza-Giron	{1 vote}	October 25th, 2004
Not so horrifying     The grudge isn't all that horrifying, I usually get scared easy (i cried at the ring) but this wasn't scary at all, i was expecting more from a japanesse horror film, usually the japanesse do make somewhat horrifying flicks, i'm not saying that i wouldn't see it again, but it wasn't scary. the japanesse are more used to blood and gore, and we aren't but still.
Jennifer Ross	{3 votes}	October 22nd, 2004
Absolutely horrifying!!     Japanese do love horror. We have hosted many students from Japan and when we watch horror films together, we cringe and they laugh. They are so used to gore and blood! The trailers on the Grudge were scary enough, and I have seen films by this director before, and they are weirdly, strange and full of blood, so I think when my 14 year old son wants to drag me to it, I will have to go and peek through hidden eyes! Just for curiosity's sake.
Joyce Stemkowsky	{3 votes}	October 21st, 2004

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