The Ring Reviews

[Highly rated reviewer]

supernatural

Whether you enjoy this film depends on whether you can suspend belief far enough to enjoy this type of fantasy. It did not work for me, although I can understand people liking it.

The suspense is well built up.

I have seen the Japanese version as well as this remake, but I found too many loose ends in the storyline to make it interesting.

If you have not seen it, I would say it is worth giving it a go. You may enjoy it. Even though it was not for me, I thought it was quite well produced.

worthy re-make of superior japanese shocker

I approached this re-make with a sense of trepidation; having seen and enjoyed the original, I was worried that an American version could leech out the brooding unease and outright terror provoked in me by the original. To my surprise, in many ways I found this to be a more 'enjoyable' experience. Naomi Watts gives a very convincing, yet ambiguous performance, as a distracted mother driven by her own journalistic curiosity into uncovering the facts surrounding a reputedly cursed home video, which somehow kills anyone one week after they've watched it. Glimpses of the tape are shown in increasing length, and are genuinely disturbing and dreamlike, while the premise is set up without any histrionics until the central character's curiosity is shared by the audience. Some of the original's more ambiguous story elements are expanded on here, while others are trimmed out completely, and the result is a more satisfactory plotline with less loose ends. While some of the shocks are clumsily handled, others, including a fantastic ferry-bound set-piece, are genuinely tense and unsettling, leaving the audience shaken and breathless. A faithful adaptation, there's still enough that's different to merit watching both, but anyone who missed the original would not be disappointed by this.

The Ring

I have watched this film twice now, and twice have I actually been shocked by certain snippets. And it's the snippets that grip you and send that matallic taste right to the back of your tongue.

I have been so intrigued by the cinematography techniques of this film that I am now convinced that the success of the film is simply down to two things: plot and camera work. If you ever rent this film out again, pause at the poignanat moments [eg first scene where girl walks into TV room] and carefully flick in pause mode the FF key. You will then get a frame by frame shot of what they put in the film. Amazing!! It's lke subliminal messaging. These horrific images are hitting you so quickly that your eyes are scanning them but not regnosing them whereas your mind views it all and is afraid. Clever eh??

Have a go and give me your thoughts!

If you're searching for a film that will really scare you this is it!

Not having seen the Japanese original I had no idea what to expect with this, but any expectations I did have were far exceeded.

This is in my opinion one of the very, very few genuinely scary films ever made. Without giving too much away, the shocks just keep coming.

Truly horrifying without being in anyway gratuitous or gruesome, I recommend this wholeheartedly to all movie adrenalin junkies... with one warning: DON'T WATCH IT ALONE!

Average remake of a Brilliant film

After watching Ring, Ring 2 and Ring 0 (original Japanese versions), I was a little worried about there being a remake, although I knew my curiosity would get the better of me and I would have to see it.

All I can really say is if you haven't seen the original Ring, then don't watch this version yet. Basically it keeps roughly to the same story, with a few extra unnecessary special effects and additions to the storyline, but it loses all the suspense and the tension of the original. This film also seems almost patronising to the viewer, anything from the original that wasn't completely obvious (which is a lot of it) has been made completely blatent as though the viewer can't be expected to actually try and think for themselves to understand what's going on. The original is excellent, you find yourself much more sympathetic towards the characters and their situations than with this remake, and it is just far superior in every way.

Really, the only reason I can think of for seeing this version first, is if you can't watch films with subtitles. Overall this remake turns what was a very creepy, tense horror, into a rather average throwaway film.

This is one of the very few horrors that's I've been able to watch again and again. Because it doesn't rely on shock horror, you can gain a lot of plot insight by repeated viewing - a sure sign that rather than being wafer thin (as some other reviewers have suggested), the plot is a lot deeper than first expected. As a fan of the original Japanese version (and it's sequel & prequel), I am in the surprising position of liking this version almost as much. The director has a different take on the story that, rather than being disappointing to a fan, is actually just a more modern (or more likely, Western) view of the original story. Scarey on more than one level, especially if you know the story!

the ring

I knew if i watched this film i could be dead in 7 days, but who cares, live dangerously.I had my cushion ready and my partner had strict instructions to stay awake, but i was still scared.Films usually have a slow beginning, a scary middle and a disappointing end but this was none stop fear factor.Even the bits that weren't supposed to be scary were heart-stopping. It was more a "keep you on the edge of your seat" than a "blood-fest".Within minutes said partner was snoring and i was ringing out a sweaty wet cushion. I tried to fast forward past the scary bits but I then had to rewind to watch them again as I didnt want to miss a trick. The whole story was excellent with twists and turns galore. The ending was the best one i've ever seen in my life and i've watched some scary films. Going to bed after, I actually stayed awake for a hour listening to every creaky floorboard and whistle of the wind. Seven days later i'm still alive but only just....Not for the feint-hearted but a definite for horror fans who want more of a story than big-boobed girls getting chopped to bits...sorry, guys, Enjoy!!

Preys on your imagination

THE RING is refreshingly free of self-referential "irony," bad American over-the-top-isms, and most of the other stuff that pollutes what passes for the pathetic little thing that American horror cinema has become. It's not afraid to take itself seriously, it (mostly) doesn't insult the audience's intelligence, and is the only big-budget horror film in recent (and not so recent) memory that knows what all the masters of horror films of the past knew: what you can imagine as an audience member is a LOT worse than anything they can show you.

Almost no gore or violence. There is an incident on a ferry that involves livestock that is really, really unsettling, all the more so because it's not necessarily supernatural. It's just unsettling. This film puts all big-budget horror films of the last 20 years in the shade. Granted, there's not a whole lot of competition (when the best a genre can offer is SCREAM, we're all in trouble,) but it does help make THE RING a remarkable film experience, above and beyond its ability to make you stain the sofa, a real treat and a nice change to teen horrors.

A Cut Above

I would point out firstly that I am not a fan of these so-called 'Horror' films that are two-a-penny, I find them far from scary and usually frustratingly ridiculous.

But 'The Ring' is definitely a cut above the rest. What is overwhelming here is the sense of unease, the fear, the fact that this is a genuinely chilling film.

Much of it is straight out of a bad dream - blurred faces, mysterious events, wondering what on earth is going on - which is all very well up to a point. That point being that I was still wondering what was going on at the end of the film.

Now I don't mind a cliffhanger finale, but when the end is reached and so many questions are unanswered and parts of the film seem to be there just to spook us but have no foundations, I am irritated.

All in all though, what you have here is a very creepy film that beats the hell out of lame 'scary' movies and will leave you unsettled for a while.

The Ring

Did anyone share a sense of confusion with me after watching the non-event which was Blair Witch?

Now THIS is worth the Blair Witch hype! A gripping, well-acted film which (unlike many films of its type) explained itself and hit us between the eyes with a great finish.