Ju-on: The Grudge

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Horrorphile - October 2008

Ju-on: The Grudge

October 29th 2008 00:07

Hideo Nikata’s Ringu (1998) raised the bar high for J-horror with its insidious supernatural terror, otherworldly atmosphere and pervasive mood. It was followed by a genuinely impressive sequel Ringu 2 (1999). Takashi Shimizu cleared the bar, and then raised it even higher with Ju-on: The Grudge (2003), another atmospherically-drenched tale of malevolent spectres and dark supernatural energy.

In 1998 Shimizu was originally commissioned to make two short, scary vignettes for a Japan television show called Gakkô no kaidan G. After producers saw how simplistic, yet genuinely original and frightening his efforts were they approached him to make a feature. He delivered two low-budget “V-cinema” video movies (Ju-on and Ju-on 2) in 2000, using the ideas from the original vignettes. They were never released internationally, but were very successful in Japan. Thus Shimizu was given the green light to make a proper theatrically-released feature, so he decided to develop the Ju-on story concepts into one full-length movie set around a haunted house. The result was one hell of a ghost thriller!

Megumi Okina as Rika

Rika (Megumi Okina), a volunteer social worker, is assigned to check up on a family. She finds the house in disarray, the grandmother in a catatonic state, and a frightened little boy who goes by the name of Toshio (Yuya Ozeki). Rika is utterly spooked and as a result ends up recovering in hospital. It is here that the audience is introduced to the ghastly figure of Kayako (Takako Fuji), the black ghost of the wife and mother who was murdered, along with her young son, by her psychotic husband several years earlier.

Rika is visited by the spectres of Kayako (Takako Fuji) and her son Toshio (Yuya Ozeki)

Japanese legend has it that a curse is born from a person who dies in the grip of a powerful rage. This curse resides in the place from where the victim was killed, but permeates everywhere the person had lived, and any unlucky person who enters the premises or crosses the path of the curse is doomed. The power of the curse enables it to continually regenerate as it destroys.

Kayako rears her frightening head

Ju-on: The Grudge is broken up into a series of eight chapters, each one named after a doomed character that encounters Ju-on; the cursed rage. This includes the social worker, her colleague, the couple who moved into the house after the murders, the sister of the husband, the original investigating detective, his teenage daughter, and so on. The curse is a harbinger of death that floats through time and space to seize with murderous intent all those who venture into the haunted household, or are in contact with those who have.

Izumi (Misa Uehara) feels a cold pair of hands

Director Shimizu plays brilliantly with the movement of the camera, the editing and composition, sneaking his spectres into reflections and corners, so effectively unnerving, it makes other horror movies look cluttered and awkward. Ju-on: The Grudge is stylish without being ostentatious, with solid production values, and a great score. The use of sound effects, especially the horrendous clicking vocal sound from Kayaka, is fantastic; alien and truly nightmarish.

If a look could kill ... Kayako has it

Although Ju-on: The Grudge has been criticised unfairly for baring a striking similarity to Ringu (shadowy, vengeful female spirit with long hair), it is definitely its own beast. Ju-on: The Grudge is less languorous in its storytelling. It’s hard not to compare the two movies, since supposedly Ringu screenwriter Takahashi Hiroshi contributed, but was uncredited. Ju-on: The Grudge crawls and croaks, its curse powerful and terrifying in its own distinct way. What is notable about Ringu and Ju-on: The Grudge though is the absence of any substantial violence or major bloodshed; both directors capture all they need to horrify audiences with ominous atmosphere to burn and weird, nightmarish imagery.

The hand of the homicidal husband clutches at Rika

Actually I was freaked out more frequently by Ju-on: The Grudge than I was by Ringu. The sequences where Kayako appears are damn fucking scary; the CCTV footage of her drifting down the hospital corridor, her bedroom reveal to Sachie (Chikako Isomura), and her wardrobe reveal to Izumi (Misa Uehara). I can safely say Ju-on: The Grudge is one of the creepiest, freakiest ghost stories I have ever seen. Now that I’ve seen it a couple of times I rate it very highly indeed, it's marvelously engineered. It's essential viewing for those who prefer their horror with little blood, but drenched in supernatural terror.

The evil eyes of Kayako can pierce your soul

(Now if only I get my hands on a bootleg sub-titled copy of the original V-cinema version of Ju-on, I’d be a happy man!)

Here's the original Japanese trailer:

Here's the surprisingly effective U.S. trailer:

Ju-on: The Grudge DVD is courtesy of Madman Entertainment (it is also available as part of The Grudge Boxset), many thanks!

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews

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Comments

6 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by KC Hill

October 29th 2008 03:35

Daily History
The HOT Report
World Travel
Street Beat
Hind Sight
Good Gadget Guide

I loved the movie

Comment by Bryn

October 29th 2008 04:31

Horrorphile

KC, good to hear!! Truly scary ghost stories are hard to come by. Have you seen the original Ringu movies? Have you seen The Orphanage? What about The Blair Witch Project?

Comment by Damo

October 30th 2008 02:02

For the Sake of Argument
My Apologetics

All I can say is thank God for Madman Distribution.

Stylish and very cool.

Comment by Bryn

October 30th 2008 03:21

Horrorphile

Damo, yeah, part of the excellent Eastern Eye division.
Shimizu oozes style indeed, and he achieves great stuff without the usual pyrotechnical dramatics.

Comment by Jason King

November 2nd 2008 20:57

Sydney Table
Salty Popcorn
Total Randomness

Scared the shit out of me!! Seriously LOVED it - cool review! As usual it shat on the US remake.

Comment by Bryn

November 2nd 2008 22:49

Horrorphile

Jason, cheers mate ... Sarah Michelle Gellar was an ill-conceived casting choice. I don't think Shimizu completely dropped the ball with the remake ... but it was compromised to suit American "rules of narrative" ...

[ Previous - Ju-on: The Grudge 2 ]

[ Next - Stop Press! GEORGE A. ROMERO back in the ZOMBIE saddle! ]

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