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882 comments in total

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213 out of 319 people found the following comment useful :-
Creepier than having someone stare at you in a bathroom stall!, 21 October 2004
Author: (johnny_betts@hotmail.com)

According to The Grudge, there's a Japanese belief that when someone dies in a powerful grip of rage, then a curse is left behind. It's a "stain" that forever becomes a part of the place where the death occurred, and it will kill everything it touches. All I can say is if that were true then the movie-going public better hope I never die in a theater. The audience at this movie was probably the most obnoxious crowd I've ever had the displeasure of watching a movie with. Talk about being in a powerful grip of rage. More on that later.

Jump scenes rule the day here. That's right, this baby is stocked with jump scenes! If you're having a hard time deciphering my complicated terminology, then let me explain that a "jump scene" is one in which something startling happens to catch you off guard and makes you jump in your seat. Some people think jump scenes are cheap ploys to get a scare from the audience, but they're really well done in this movie. And they're manufactured frequently and shrewdly enough to keep you in a constant state of unease.

Unfortunately, when most moviegoers get scared they like to scream and then laugh and talk about it for 2 minutes afterwards. If you're gonna scream then scream. But then SHUT UP and WATCH THE MOVIE! This ain't a comedy and it certainly isn't a coffeehouse, so quit killin' my atmosphere.

Some of you might be a little agitated to know that The Grudge does follow some clichéd horror movie conventions, such as a character investigating a creepy noise in a dark attic with only a cigarette lighter to illuminate the way. And of course, one character has to slowly follow a strange figure that shouldn't be there in the first place. But it's forgivable. Keep in mind, characters aren't necessarily supposed to know they're in a horror movie. I'm sure we've all explored strange noises before, except rather than a horrific, disfigured ghost producing the noise, in real life the sound is usually coming from Uncle Larry's bathroom excursion. Never underestimate the horror of a night out at the Taco Bell.

Comparisons to The Ring are inevitable, so I'll just say that I personally feel The Grudge is the creepier of the two. This is a movie that's heavy on atmosphere and freaky imagery. The Japanese ghosts creeped me out even more than the time I caught some pervert staring at me in the men's bathroom stall back in my college days. Lucky for him, he took off before I had a chance to demonstrate what happens when a person is caught in a powerful grip of rage.

But The Ring has the better story and a much better ending. The Grudge does a great job of keeping you guessing. You never really know where it's going, and since the story isn't linear you really have to pay attention. I know a lot of you have the attention span of a goldfish (about 9 seconds, you just learned something today, thank me later), so this may be problematic. I think it works fairly well, but one of my complaints is that near the end everything is wrapped up and explained rather quickly.

As a result, I wish the movie had been longer. A longer running time could've produced more in-depth character development, a more clever way to explain what was going on, and maybe even a better ending. And there's my biggest complaint. Why do so many horror movies feel the need to use the I Know What You Did Last Summer-esque "look, there's gonna be a sequel" ending? Come on, how about some closure? It's similar to if you're waiting for me to close out my review in a witty and funny fashion, but instead, for some reason I just decide to end the review in mid sent...

THE GIST

If you're looking for some Halloween entertainment, then The Grudge will give you some good jumps and surround you with creepy imagery. But I strongly recommend that you see it at a time when there won't be a big crowd because I know I would've enjoyed the movie a lot more had I not been surrounded by a lot of stand-up comedians who felt the need to crack jokes at the most tense and inopportune times. Folks, this is a horror movie. Tension and atmosphere are a big part of it, so please keep your laughing and talking to a minimum. I look forward to watching the DVD in peace and quiet one day where the only idiots I'll possibly be surrounded by will be friends and family.

Rating: 3.75 (out of 5)

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172 out of 245 people found the following comment useful :-
Great movie with the proper understanding of the culture, 20 November 2004
Author: togasaurus from Oakland

There are a lot of comments floating about complaining about a lack of plot or reason behind characters actions. Jabs at it being a copy of The Ring or just another ghost story. Let me try and help out a bit. Hopefully more people will go and see the movie for what it is and not look for Western film theories in an Asian movie.

The plot is very simple, part of the appeal of the series is how effective such a simple story can be. Watch the movie and pay attention. I'm not really sure what people are complaining about. It all seemed very simple to me. Terrible events cause spirits to haunt a house and all those associated with it. Why are they haunting about? Their lives were ended prematurely and under terrible circumstances! What more do you want. I'm a ghost, why do I go and kill jane who came into my house, cause I'm p*ssed about how I died and I'm going to take out on somebody. Simple. Gripe gripe gripe, nothing is being said. Here is what I loved about the movie, ignore everything else I've said and just look for what I saw.

In horror fan is going to love the use of music and sound effects in the movie. Take note of the lack of dialogue in the movie, yet how much emotion is conveyed. I'm sorry it wasn't our beautiful American actors carrying the film. It was brilliant music, sound effects and editing. Welcome to Japanese film. Less is more...blah blah blah.

Key things to look for in Japanese horror, spirits (not ghosts very different then what we think of as a ghost), indicators of the spirit (eyes and hair not chain rattling or moving furniture). The eyes in this movie were not an indication of who was going to be killed, it is not the ring. Eyes are the portals into the spirit. The significance of her eyes flashing into view isn't to tell you who is going to die but to convey the state of the spirits in the film. The hair is a classic Japanese horror technique. Nothing really behind except its creepy and it continues a tradition in a culture that respects tradition.

On to spirits. Not ghosts. We have spirits for everything, good and bad. My dad will tell you that there is a spirit in his coffee mug, a different one then the one in his coffee maker. We all get along provided we pay the proper respect to them by letting them do their thing. Example: My dad makes his coffee and drinks it from his mug respecting the role the spirits had. Don't ask me why but thats what we do. It isn't magic or hokey pokey. We don't pray to any of them save very important ones, say ones that protect your home, they just exist. In the Grudge the significant relationship is the fact that these tortured spirits don't haunt a location as much as they haunt all associated with the place and time of their greatest pain. They aren't ghost of the killed family. They are spirits whose purpose is to cause the pain they have suffered. Back to the coffee. Mug spirit likes to serve coffee and be cleaned and treated well, its his job kind of. Emotional trauma spirit from the movie likes to cause emotional trauma. Get it. They aren't haunting in the western sense of seeking revenge they are spirits created from a traumatic event and are fulfilling their job of continuing what they know best. The prompts at the beginning of the movie explain this. They do a horrible job and say something about being infected with rage but it all is the same.

So why was this movie scary. Beyond the classic use of music and lighting, or the quick edit cut shots and nasty faces of the spirits. Its scary because for a culture that has spirits watching over every little thing you could think of, having a few spirits who's purpose is to cause pain is pretty serious.

Watch the movie with that in mind. That spirits that you believe you function alongside daily can also turn it all around and f things up for you. Oh yeah, you get killed by a spirit created from a terrible even and guess what, you've now become a spirit haunted by pain as well. Get into the music and sound effects, it is great fun.

The skipping about in the timeline is done very well as well.

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106 out of 168 people found the following comment useful :-
I was pleasantly shocked, 24 October 2004

Author: Danny from Seattle, WA

I went to this movie expecting an artsy scary film. What I got was scare after scare. It's a horror film at it's core. It's not dull like other horror films where a haunted house just has ghosts and gore. This film doesn't even show you the majority of the deaths it shows the fear of the characters. I think one of the best things about the concept where it's not just the house thats haunted its whoever goes into the house. They become haunted no matter where they are. Office buildings, police stations, hotel rooms... etc. After reading some of the external reviews I am really surprised that critics didn't like this film. I am going to see it again this week and am excited about it.

I gave this film 10 stars because it did what a horror film should. It scared the s**t out of me.

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74 out of 111 people found the following comment useful :-
Just as good as the Japanese films (but with an ending rant against remakes of foreign films), 4 February 2005

Author: Brandt Sponseller from New York City

Karen (Sarah Michelle Gellar), an exchange student in Japan who is just beginning to do some social work, is sent to aid an elderly semi-catatonic woman, Emma (Grace Zabriskie), after her previous caretaker, Yoko (Yoko Maki), disappears. Karen soon learns that something is not right in Emma's home, and she attempts to "see how deep the rabbit hole goes".

Maybe it's a delayed influence from the success of M. Night Shyamalan's films, but slower-paced, understated horror films are a recent trend. In some cases, such as Hide and Seek (2005), the approach works remarkably well, and in others, such as White Noise (2005), the pacing tends to kill the film. I didn't like The Grudge quite as much as Hide and Seek, but this is still a very good film--it earns a 9 out of 10 from me.

The Grudge has a couple significant differences from other recent examples of that trend, however. One, it is well known that this is a remake based on the Japanese film series that began with Ju-On (2000) (in particular, it's extremely close to the first half of Ju-On: The Grudge, aka Ju-On 3, from 2003). Two, as with many Japanese horror films, the slower pacing here isn't so much in the realm of realist drama as with surrealism. As is also the case with a large percentage of European horror, The Grudge should be looked at more as a filmed nightmare.

Director Takashi Shimizu, also the director of the five Japanese entries in the Ju-On series to date (the fifth is currently in production), and writer Stephen Susco have largely dispensed with linearity and are not overly concerned with logic or plot holes when it comes to the horror behind the story. The idea instead is to present a dreamlike sequence of scenes, with dream logic, where the focus is atmosphere, creepiness, the uncanny, and for many viewers--scares. How well the film works for you will largely depend on how well you can adapt yourself to, or are used to, this different approach to film-making (although admittedly, some of the seeming gaps are filled in by previous entries in the Ju-On series). Traditionally, American audiences consider as flaws leaving plot threads hanging and abandoning "rules" for the "monster". A more poetic, metaphorical, surreal approach to film isn't yet accepted by the mainstream in the U.S.

However, even if you're not used to it, it's worth trying to suspend your normal preconceptions about films and give The Grudge a shot. This is a well written, well directed, well acted film, filled with unusual properties, such as the story interweaving a large number of "main characters" (which is done better here than the more episodic Ju-On 3), good cinematography, subtle production design touches (check out Gellar's clothes, which match the color and texture of the exterior of Emma's house, when Gellar first approaches), and beautifully effective horror material.

Even though it is more slowly paced that your average horror film of the past, the pacing usually enhances the eeriness, and there is no shortage of bizarre events to keep horror fans entertained. The supernatural premise of the film is absorbing, and based on interviews on the DVD with Shimizu, have prodded me to pay more attention to Japanese beliefs and folklore. Although the most interesting subtexts would probably arise with a more intimate knowledge of Japanese culture, it's interesting to ponder why so many Japanese horror films feature scary children and adults who look like scary children.

I subtracted one point for the film slightly veering into clichéd mystery/thriller territory with a "here's what really happened" flashback, but even that was fairly well done, and otherwise, this would have been a 10 out of 10.

Now that I've said all of the above, let me finish with a mini-rant: It's not that I'm anti-remake, but it is ridiculous that U.S. distributors and studios feel that we need remakes of foreign films to make them appropriate for consumption. The original versions of these films should just be playing in U.S. theaters in wide release. There is no need to present an almost identical film but just substituting white American actors for non-white or foreign actors. Yes, The Grudge is a fine film, but ultimately, I'd rather see something original using this talent, and be treated to the latest foreign horror films--not just Japanese, but also Indian, Spanish, Chinese, etc.--at my multiplex. In the hope that someone with some pull at the studios reads this, it is also more cost-effective to do this, as (1) you can completely avoid production costs, and simply make domestic distribution deals from which you receive profit, and (2) you can make money off of fans like myself who otherwise pick up the foreign film DVDs in foreign manufactured or even bootleg versions.

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75 out of 122 people found the following comment useful :-
Effective Americanization Of Asian Chiller, 1 November 2004

Author: Hal-900 from WA, USA

"The Grudge" is a remake of Shimizu's own series of popular Japanese horror films. Shimizu knows he is not dealing with anything new, so he does what any intelligent person would have done in his place: he forgets logic and concentrates in giving viewers a fun ride. He uses commonly known clichés associated with ghost stories but Shimizu plays with these elements in an imaginative manner. The nonlinear narrative is not a mere gimmick but an interesting way to present sequences from different perspectives. At the end, all I can say is that if the only purpose of a horror film is to scare the audience (the same way a comedy is to make people laugh), this movie succeeded with flying colors. I watched it in a theater with an audience and it was fun to see viewers go wild over this one. It probably doesn't play as well in your living room.

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92 out of 161 people found the following comment useful :-
I was terrified during this great movie!, 22 October 2004

Author: Doby from Midwest USA

This is what I wrote to some friends earlier:

HOLY CRAP, The Grudge is, honest to God, one of the scariest films I've ever seen! I am either getting very soft in my old age, or Sam Raimi and Ghost Pictures did a KICK A** job! (Can't wait for Boogeyman!)

I was very scared sitting in the dark theater and wished I had someone, anyone, sitting next to me (except the protagonist in Grudge. I saw the movie by myself.) I swear, there were many many jump scenes that were NOT expected! I felt foolish but my nerves did not care! I was on edge the entire movie, from the opening credits, and the music was fantastically scary. I keep thinking of that sound, though, and I DO NOT LIKE IT!

I actually gasped aloud a few times, and cried, "oh" at one scene!! Oh, yeah, I even half-covered my eyes a few times! Word to the wise, though: I thought some of the scenes were a little psychotic. My DH hated Event Horizon and thought whoever wrote it was sick and psycho, but I don't remember the movie so can't compare.

I can't say I "enjoyed" this movie b/c I was terrified, but it was very very good and scary. The ending scene, too...whoa! For being a 32-year-old-mommy, I think I may have nightmares from this movie, especially because of that sound. Please get out of my head ;)

In summary, this is not a slasher flick like I grew up with (Jason, Freddy). This is a most-of-the-time spooky movie. Perfect for Halloween.

Two great trailers for this movie were Boogeyman and The Ring 2!!

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39 out of 57 people found the following comment useful :-
misunderstood by too many people, 16 January 2005
Author: bte686s from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Grantes; it's not possible to make a movie anywhere near perfect, but this one has been so misunderstood that I created an account and am writing my first review ever in its defense.

If you don't like a movie that doesn't play by your rules (the characters must develop, the scenes must be sequential, ghosts can't leave their haunting grounds, any unresolved ending means a sequel...), then buy tickets to movies you know you'll like instead of getting disappointed and complaining. I don't mean to offend any of the readers or reviewers that thought badly of the movie, but the overwhelming negativity I found to be based more on false assumptions and adherence to non-universal traditions

--spoilers ahead--

For those who didn't pay enough attention and got confused, here are some things people missed that are a little essential for keeping up with the plot (in no particular order or completeness): Yoko's jaw, which she is later without, is the bloody chunk in the attic. The gasoline used to burn the house was brought in by the detective. The lighter--also to burn the house--was not the heroine's, it was her boyfriend's (who we did in fact see smoking in the Buddhist mourner scene). The spirits are not ghosts as we think of them; other reviews have gone into depth to explain that. The creepy hair is a Japanese spirit trademark, like doors closing themselves in American horror. Bill Pullman's suicide is explained very thoroughly throughout the movie, if you remember all the parts and link them together.

Another thing I would like to point out is the extreme differences between theater traditions around the world. Americans prefer a plot-based, character-driven experience. In Native American storytelling, in contrast, characters routinely change their names and appearances. Japanese kabuki theater purposefully avoided plot entirely. What I'm trying to say is that this movie is very easy to misunderstand when viewed in the American horror paradigm. There are thematic materials and deep traditions all over the place, and it really is a scary movie if you get into it and ignore the schoolchildren around you laughing at it, but if you don't pick up on (or at least accept) the deeper meanings then a lot of the experience is lost. The movie was (re)made for American audiences, so it isn't quite as quirkily Japanese as it could be; so just let the idiosyncrasies draw you in and then scare you ####less.

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29 out of 41 people found the following comment useful :-
Hats off, 31 January 2005

Author: deathlord_metal from United Kingdom

Massive multiple chills down the spine! I'm surprised there's people who didn't like it! I saw it at 10 o'clock in the morning and still got scared stiff! And I've seen hundreds of thrillers/horror movies! For crying out loud,I'm 22!!! I mean, OK, voice acting, not particularly good, probably even b-movie-ish. But the genuine look of terror, the sound effects, the flow! From the very start, hitting you again and again with relentless, unforgiving, terrorising scenes! So many clichés yet none fails to surprise/scare! You know it's coming, it's coming, it's coming, BOO! and you still jump off the chair. Grab a pillow and a blanket, call your closest friend over and do not watch it at night! Hats off to the Japanese!

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115 out of 213 people found the following comment useful :-
Loses something, 28 December 2004

Author: R.F. Montgomery from United States

This movie definitely loses something in the translation. Unlike "The Ring" which equaled and even improved on the original story in some ways, this one just meanders along in an uninspired fashion.

The original Japanese film, "Ju-on", was pretty incoherent, mostly just a series of set pieces and great chills. The American version, directed by the same filmmaker, has done nothing towards clarifying the muddled story and, aside from the great opening sequences, is just a straight-forward recreation of the same suspenseful sequences that somehow don't play as well. I'd suggest renting the original instead.

5 out of 10.

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59 out of 105 people found the following comment useful :-
If you've seen the Japanese originals, you've already seen this film., 31 October 2004

Author: dbborroughs from Glen Cove, New York

This review is really a word of warning, if you've seen any of the earlier Japanese versions of this story you've seen this movie before. If you've seen all four of the earlier films, you've really seen everything (except the frightening opening with Bill Pullman) and you'd best wait for home video.

I understand that the film makers wanted to make sure that this film worked and made them money, so they repeated what worked, even casting the same Japanese actors for the kid and other roles; but it would have been nice if they had done more that was new beyond the opening sequence.

This isn't to say that the film is bad, its not, rather, its just that unless you're walking in to the film fresh odds are you're going to be like me and know what each five or ten minutes is going to bring because of the set up of the sequence.

For me it was a 6 out of 10, for fresh eyes probably higher.

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