The Grudge

[W00t,iM uNbAnNd]

Ive been thinking about seeing this movie, but im uncertain if its worth it. From what i hear from my friends, i am unsure. I have been given many mixed reviews, some liking it and some thinking it was boring....

Should I use up 2 hours of my life to see this movie???

[QuincyArcher]

I rented it the other night and honestly i loved the movie so much that i went out and bought it. Like The Ring, The Grudge is actually a remake of japanese horror movie called 'Ju-On'. but the main difference between The Ring and The Grudge is that for the Grudge, They actually brought on the original Japanese Director from Ju-On (Takashi Shimizu) to direct this film and 'americanize' it in a sense. In fact, aside from the core actors/actresses, the entire production staff of this movie was japanese and it was filmed entirely in japan. So you tend to get a real sense of authenticity when watching rather than feeling its some sloppy remake exploiting a decent foreign license (like the Ring).

Getting to the actual content of the movie, this is not a blood and gore horror movie, its actually even rated PG-13, but i really wouldnt suggest it to anyone under 18-19. I've seen nearly every horror movie out there and none of them are really able to scare me at all, and going into this movie not expecting much it literally scared the pants off me. Rather than using over-the-top special effects, blood/gore or jump tactics like most american made horror flicks, The Grudge uses more psychological horror that just makes you feel uneasy throughout the entire film and it makes it much more suspenseful in my opinion. [spoiler]the stairwell scene in the office complex in this movie was probably one of the best scenes i have ever seen in a horror movie[/spoiler]

anyways, i would highly recommend this movie if you're looking for a good horror flick. anyone who says it was boring or not scary is either lying or had their eyes closed throughout the movie.

[Gravy Train]

Meh, the Ring and Grudge type films really dissapoint me. I've seen quite a few horror movies but the only good one that has come out in the last couple years is 28 Days Later.l

[James]

[color=#334366]The Japanese version (Ju-On) is better than the American version, which is identical save for some added bits of nothing that don't add to the story whatsoever.

The Japanese version...eh. It's okay; marginally okay. It's an obvious rip-off of Ring (which created the so-called "ghost girl" sub-genre) and it's a poor one at that. And don't even start comparing the American Grudge with the American Ring -- there is no comparison, lol. The Ring had a significantly different plot (which was actually pretty decent considering it was a remake) and it had its own unique visual style (thanks to Gore Verbinski, who can really create some amazing subtle visuals).

Honestly, I don't think it's worthwhile. See the Japanese version if you must, but be aware that it may not float your boat.[/color]

[QuincyArcher]

wait wait wait... first you say:

[QUOTE=James]
It's okay; marginally okay. It's an obvious rip-off of Ring. [/quote]
And then you go on to say:
[QUOTE=James]
And don't even start comparing the American Grudge with the American Ring -- there is no comparison, lol. The Ring had a significantly different plot. [/quote]

so you're saying it's an obvious ripoff, yet its completely different? or are you saying it's a ripoff because there's a slight correlation between the ghost woman in the Grudge with the zombie ghost girl in The Ring (was the ring the first movie to come up with the concept of ghosts?) get serious man. and whats wrong wtih comparing a horror movie with a horror movie? I guess i shouldn't go comparing Rice Crispies with Crispy Rice then either huh? i might end up offending a dedicated cereal fanatic.

All that aside, I don't know the Ring really didn't do anything for me (except Naomi Watts *drool*) neither did 28 Days Later. But for me The Grudge was amazing and the first movie to actually scare me in years. So i guess we'll just have to let Mr. W00t,iM uNbAnNd decide for himself ne?

[James]

[QUOTE=QuincyArcher]


so you're saying it's an obvious ripoff, yet its completely different? or are you saying it's a ripoff because there's a slight correlation between the ghost woman in the Grudge with the zombie ghost girl in The Ring (was the ring the first movie to come up with the concept of ghosts?) get serious man. and whats wrong wtih comparing a horror movie with a horror movie? I guess i shouldn't go comparing Rice Crispies with Crispy Rice then either huh? i might end up offending a dedicated cereal fanatic. [/quote]

[color=#334366]Um...I think you are missing the point. lol

I'm saying that The Grudge is a complete ripoff of Ring. I said that The Ring is different from Ring. I wasn't saying Grudge was completely different from Ring.

If you actually take a look at the film techniques used in The Grudge, you'll find that it's a complete cash-in on Ring's success and innovation. Don't forget; a whole bunch of so-called "ghost girl" movies came out after Ring, which itself was the most successful Japanese film in its home market. So it's obvious that various studios have tried to ride Ring's coat tails, so to speak.

[i]Nobody[/i] said that Ring was the first movie to come up with ghosts. Either you have skimmed my post or completely misunderstood it. I said that Ring was the movie that started the "ghost girl sub-genre", which has become so popular in Japan and within asia in general (both Chinese and South Korean films have tried to go for this style -- there is even a South Korean Ring called "Ring Virus").

So, first and foremost, I think it's worth going back over my post again. On every single point you've kinda misinterpreted it. Apologies if I didn't make it clear enough, but nothing you've attributed to me is what I had said at all. lol[/color][quote=QuincyArcher]

All that aside, I don't know the Ring really didn't do anything for me (except Naomi Watts *drool*) neither did 28 Days Later. But for me The Grudge was amazing and the first movie to actually scare me in years. So i guess we'll just have to let Mr. W00t,iM uNbAnNd decide for himself ne?[/QUOTE]

[color=#334366]The thing is, The Grudge is basically a fairly cheap imitation of Ring. The American version in particular has included elements that only serve to make the story needlessly convoluted. And although it's almost a frame-by-frame duplicate of the Japanese film, it [i]still[/i] misses some of the best scares of the Japanese version.

I'm not saying that nobody will like Grudge -- I'm sure plenty will. I'm just saying that Grudge is generally considered to be a follower rather than a leader. Ring is really the source and it's a movie that people should see, especially those who have an interest in Japanese horror (and who are interested in great cinematography in general).

I mean, don't get me wrong -- I enjoy films like The Matrix a whole lot, for instance. But I wouldn't want to ignore the cues it has taken from Dark City, even if it's still a unique film in and of itself.[/color]

[eyesintheshadow]

i th ink the grudghe SUCKED. it was not scary, the plot wasnt very good, and it just wasnt good.the acting was good, but i heard that it was [I]so scary[/I] when i saw iti did not jump once. iw asnt even frightened the slightest bit. so i personally think the grudge could not have been a worse movie. the ending was given away, in the begining which sucked because i knew the hole way through the mivie who it was and all that crap.

[Sanada]

I just saw The Grudge (American Version) yesterday.
I found it quite amusing.
It isn't what I'd call scary, but more mysterious and full of tense moments.
The things I liked that they actually tried to maintain the Japanese aspects of the film. It all takes place in Japan with an American main character, and like many Japanese horror movies, you'll only know what's going on if you watch the whole movie, since it's explained throughout the movie non-chronological.
I haven't seen the original, but after seeing the American version, I'm sure I'll pick up the original Japanese version!

[Shwa]

I've seen "The Grude" a couple of times at the movies with my friends and I thought it to be scary and productive in the same way. My friends bought the DVD version and after watching the movie we went into the special features. We found out that a lot of the scenes that you would think have computer graphics are just really good designs and acting, there is basically no computer images in the movie except for a scene or two. Anyways both "The Grudge" and "The Ring" were movies that made you think and really got into your head, I'll be waiting for the Ring 2 to come out to see if it will be better that the 1st with storyline and scare tactics.

[Annie]

You know, you just posted in a thread that was 1) relatively dead, and 2) people had seen it, and came to discuss it.