The Ring was probably one of the most anticipated films for me this year. It is a remake of a very famous Japanese film, "Ringu" that broke many box office records in that country. There have already been sequels to the film in Japan and probably due to its success in the first weekend at the box office, there will be some sequels here as well. The concept of the film is very intriguing and is what drew myself and many others to seeing it. I did enjoy the film and it did scare me at some parts, yet I can only recommend to wait for it on video because the direction of it was weak and some of the acting was horrible. There are many ideas that fail to be explained and many things that just don't make sense. I know it's just a movie but it could have been so much better and because of this I was disappointed. When the potential is so great and I just see average, I cannot recommend something. The Japanese film is superior and I feel the new American version could have been done better.
The film is about a videotape, that causes the viewer to get an unwanted phone call soon after viewing. They are told by an unknown voice that they will die 7 days later. As the film unwinds, we learn of unexplainable deaths of some teenagers in the area. Soon a reporter (Naomi Watts) decides to take it upon herself to search for clues to discover the mystery behind this deadly videotape. She naively views the tape herself and soon starts to believe the legend behind it and therefore has to rush to find out how to save herself as well as those around her.
Similar to this years earlier "FearDotCom (*1/2)" (where the viewer of the website dies 2 days after viewing a website) we are taken on a journey with extraordinary cinematography but average writing and even worse acting. Naomi Watts who I believe was incredible in last years thrilling Mulholland Drive (***) tries her best with what she is given and does a decent job. She has so much more potential though and hopefully will find a better script soon. Her son (Danny Dorfman) tries so hard to act as if he were in "The Sixth Sense" (***1/2) yet he just comes off as being robotic and dull. He tries to "Osment" the best that he can, but the bar has been set so high by his counterpart that it comes off as a failure. His lines sound so forced and fake, that I got distracted by them. Watt's ex in the film (Martin Henderson) does the best he can, but he just turns out to be a washed up daytime soap star. Besides acting, I kept wondering about so many things in the film. Why does a loving mother knowingly leave a deadly tape out for her son to watch? How does a reporter stay on the job after she is fired? Why is the well on the farm at the beginning of the film, but in another location at other times in the film? Why do people have to sit two inches away from their tv screens? This are some of the many irrational questions that if explained better could have made for a more frightening movie. Instead things feel rushed and tacked on.
I still did like some of the film. The visuals from the videotape were imaginative and enthralling. The atmosphere was dense and the concept was wonderful and for this reason I kept with it. I must admit there were a few parts where I got scared but it always felt a little cheap. I could have a friend jump out from behind a door and scare me in the same way. I did love the television idea near the end of the film, that was the best part. Yet, I would recommend you to save some money and wait for it on video. Watching it on video might actually add to the chills and the concept of the film and keep you from answering your own phone for hours. Unfortunately for me, I seemed to believe that the characters in the film were going to die not from an evil tape but instead from sitting to close to their television screens.
** 1/2 out of 4
P.S. I couldnt find the ring on epinions when i searched for "The Ring"
A video tape is circling the globe. People watch it and receive a phone call stating that they only have one week left to live. Viewers of the tape di...More at HotMovieSale.com
Hailed by US Weekly as the scariest movie of the year The Ring is a cinematic thrill ride that will hold you spellbound from the very first shock! Sea...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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