Ringu 2 (1999)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Hideo Nakata

Writers:

Hideo Nakata (writer)
Kôji Suzuki (characters)

Release Date:

10 June 1999 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Plot:

Reiko takes Yoichi into hiding when her son begins to display frightening powers. Meanwhile, Mai Takano and the authorities begin a desperate search for them, as the mysterious Ring curse spreads...

Plot Keywords:

Sequel | Child In Peril | Revenge | Watching Video | Supernatural

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Miki Nakatani	...	Mai Takano
Hitomi Sato	...	Masami Kurahashi
Kyôko Fukada	...	Kanae Sawaguchi
Fumiyo Kohinata	...	Dr. Kawajiri
Kenjiro Ishimaru	...	Detective Omuta
Yûrei Yanagi	...	Okazaki
Rikiya Otaka	...	Yoichi Asakawa
Yoichi Numata	...	Takashi Yamamura
Nanako Matsushima	...	Reiko Asakawa
Hiroyuki Sanada	...	Ryuji Takayama
Masako	...	Shizuko Yamamura
Rie Inou	...	Sadako Yamamura
Katsumi Muramatsu	...	Koichi Asakawa
Daisuke Ban	...	Dr. Heihachiro Ikuma
Yôko Chôsokabe	...	Coronor

Also Known As:

Ring 2 (International: English title)

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Denmark:15 | France:U | Hong Kong:IIB | Philippines:PG-13 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 | Germany:16

Company:

Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co.

Trivia:

Daisuke Ban who plays Dr. Heihachiro Ikuma is credited in Ringu 2 (1999) despite the fact he never appears in it.

Quotes:

[regarding Yoichi's powers]
Mai Takano: Hey, will you promise me something?
Yoichi: What?
Mai Takano: That you'll never do that again... no matter what happens.
[pause]
Mai Takano: It's really scary. OK?
Yoichi: Are you on my side?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Ring Two (2005)

Doesn't quite emulate `Ring's smartness but, as horror sequels go, stands strong

This movie takes place a week after the events of `Ring', making the first movie pretty which a pre-requisite for viewing (director Nakata fortunately doesn't feel the need to waste too much time on annoying exposition). We now look at those who were in contact with characters from the first movie and how they're getting on. This calls for the reprisal of most of the cast, including the lead Reiko. This time Reiko fears that her son, whom she saved in the previous flick, may be under the influence of the evil of Sadako. Guess what? She's out to stop her!

There's less tension evident in `Ring 2' than the previous, less a sense of worry and desperation. Part of this is due to the shifting of character's prominence. Another element is because this movie takes a somewhat more analytical approach to the events of the first – the police are involved, scientists are trying to understand the phenomena. While this makes sense from a realism angle, it does somewhat detract from the underlying menace of Sadoka.

Structurally the movie takes the same idea as the previous – a slow build up to a climatic event, interspersed with some moments of terror. Some of this terror now comes from a child – playing on innocence – and the child in question, Yoichi, is quite capable of being frightening in a blank-faced way. However he's just not as capable as having the greater, unknown, terror the previous movie produced – like any sequel in the genre there's the feeling of the killer slashing their way through each flick.

Nakata is fairly competent with what he has. The lighting is often muted, the camera work focused (without being intense), his actors giving grand performances… but somehow the second time it doesn't work out quite as well. This, coupled with a disappointing ending, left me somewhat disappointed. There's some good moments in it – particularly with the television images – but overall it fails to quite grab you. Still a far more intelligent fare than the gore-drenched horror that most adhere to in this genre, and you could do a lot lot worse. 6/10.