'Ring'
combines an emerging teen culture in an increasingly tech savvy
nation with a traditional Asian style ghost story. It's very much of
its time (in the way it was executed) but has aged really well. The
leads were fantastic, and the effects (though basic) are low key and
few and far between which keeps them from getting boring and works in
a low budget medium.
The
opening scene is one of my favourites in horror. There's a perfectly
excruciating build up and release of tension as the girl tells her
friend a scary story - but it's just a story - but it happened to her
friend! - nah, not really - but then the phone rings! All of this
turns out to be a prolonged cold open, and we never even see either
of the girls again (though they are mentioned). Instead, we switch to
our protagonist who's investigation of the ghostly deaths soons
becomes personal when she, her kid, and her ex all end up watching
the video (oh yeah there's this video and if you watch it you die
after a week - I don't think I really need to give a proper plot
synopsis on such a popular film). I like the two main characters;
they interact naturally and you can tell they have a lot of history
without it being explained outright.
The
start proves somewhat confusing, and the plot proceeds rather
choppily that can make the story hard to follow. While the confusion
over who the main characters are is soon rectified, the film
continues to suffer pacing problems throughout.
The
scene towards the end where they're taking it in turns to literally
go down the well and stand in the water, knowing she's in there
somewhere, is another one that really stood out to me. It culminates
as Sadako grabs at her arm and we cut from her ghostly
fingernail-less hand to her hair slipping wetly from her fleshless
skull. It's pretty horrifying, and the revelation at the end that it
was all essentially for nothing made it all the worse (not the
granddad, he was actually likeable!)
The
editing is good all over. There's nothing overly complex, but the
long shots and quiet ambient sound followed by quick cuts and flashes
is a reliable horror recipe. I really liked the creepy chord that
played whenever the date appears - the progression of time is
something to be feared in this film.
Minimalist
and restrained yet at times alarmingly intense.
Ring: 55.7