Ju-on 2 (2003)

Director:

Takashi Shimizu

Writer:

Takashi Shimizu (written by)

Release Date:

5 September 2003 (South Korea)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

Plot:

While driving , the pregnant horror-movie actress Kyôko Harase and her fiancé are in a car crash caused by the Toshio's friend...

Plot Keywords:

Haunted House | Sequel | Pregnancy | Suburb | Asian Horror

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Noriko Sakai	...	Kyoko Harase
Chiharu Niiyama	...	Tomoka Miura
Kei Horie	...	Noritaka Yamashita
Yui Ichikawa	...	Chiharu
Ayumu Saitô	...	Masashi Ishikura
Emi Yamamoto	...	Megumi Ôbayashi
Erika Kuroishi	...	Hiromi
Kaoru Mizuki	...	Aki Harase
Shinobu Yuuki	...	Kaoru Ishikura (as Shinobu Yûki)
Takako Fuji	...	Kayako Saeki
Yuya Ozeki	...	Toshio Saeki (as Yûya Ozeki)
Shingo Katsurayama	...	Keisuke Ôkuni
Fumika Hidejima	...	DJ
Hidetoshi Kageyama	...	Kazumasa Ishikura
Hiroko Toda	...	Shojo Yaku no Haiyû

Also Known As:

Ju-on 2 (USA) (DVD box title)
Ju-on 2: Gekijô-ban (Japan) (poster title)
Ju-on 4 (Japan) (working title)
Ju-on: The Grudge 2 (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and disturbing images.

Runtime:

92 min | France:95 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Malaysia:18SG | Ireland:15A | Sweden:15 | USA:R | Hong Kong:IIB | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | South Korea:15 | Philippines:R-13 | Singapore:PG | Germany:16 | UK:15 (video premiere) | Australia:M | Finland:K-18

Company:

Pioneer LDC

Movie Connections:

Follows Ju-on (2000) (V)

Soundtrack:

Machigai

Freaky!

The rage of Kayako and her son Toshio continue in this sequel to "Ju-On: The Grudge." Creepier and scarier than the first film, Ju-On 2 begins with a young couple and a tragic car accident which leaves a pregnant television star named Kyoko devastated. With her fiancé in a coma and her unborn baby supposedly lost, she continues with her blossoming career in horror films. But when she agrees to appear in a pseudo-documentary about the "haunted house" where Kayako and Toshio still "reside," the virus of the Grudge begins anew. Soon, everyone involved with the production is missing or dead, and Kyoko, who has recently been informed that her baby is not lost after all, begins to realize that what she is carrying may not be hers at all.

Ju-On 2 is definitely much more scarier than its predecessor. Disturbing sound effects, jerky camera movements and one dizzy nightmarish scene after another literally left me reeling, feeling as confused and freaked out as the characters in the film. There are some great visual effects here; Kayako and her wild hair spread over a ceiling, tendrils dropping down into lethal nooses; a wig come to hideous life and the ghostly blue Toshio staring out of the darkness. The ending was a work of morbid art, leaving me quite stunned. "Ju-On 2" has proved beyond a doubt that sequels are not always a bad thing, and sometimes, they're even better!

Highly recommended!