One of the more recognizable, and quite frankly terrifying images to come from film in the last 20 years, was born in the 2002 horror film “The Ring.”
Whether or not you have seen the remake of the 1988 Japanese film “Ringu” (directed by Gore Verbinski of “Pirates of the Caribbean” fame), you have undoubtedly encountered visions of the ominous young girl, demonic eyes watching through long black hair that covers her face, poised inside the television set. The image has quickly become a favorite of horror fans, akin to the Grady twins in “The Shining” or young Carol Anne Freeling, hands pressed against the television (in a coincidental or influenced way) in “Poltergeist.” The question then beckons; is the rest of movie worth watching?
“The Ring” begins with the introduction of the primary catalyst for the film; a mysterious video tape endowed with a curse. Anyone who watches the tape will die exactly seven days later. The frights begin from the onset as two young girls (Amber Tamblyn and Rachael Bella) discuss the “legend” of the tape.
The rest of the movie chronicles seven days in the life of Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) a reporter who views the tape while doing research for a story. Rachel lives with her spooky and baleful looking son Aidan (David Dorfman). Though originally skeptical of the curse, Rachel begins noticing strange things happening to her, such as her face being blurred out of photos. In addition, she begins to encounter several of the various disturbing images from the tape and becomes convinced that the curse is real. With the help of a former love interest Noah (Martin Henderson), Rachel begins an investigation into the source of the video tape, and the girl that is on the tape who is seemingly behind the mayhem.
“The Ring” works as a traditional horror film in that it has no gore or mutilation, but rather an intriguing plot with a limited amount of jumps and frights. The movie features some great chilling moments, specifically the tape itself, which plays back in an eerie stop start type motion and reveals a series of random and ghostly images. Coupled with isolated events like a horrifying ferry ride or a flickering television broadcasting static, the creepiness of young Aidan and of course the girl in the TV, “The Ring” boasts a perfect amount of scares to keep the viewer on edge without feeling the need to push them over and then bludgeon the corpse further with a hammer or table saw.
Adding to the ominous tones is the gloomy city of Seattle where the film takes place. The Pacific northwest offers the lonely flavor of any metropolis, while adding the rural outskirts of Washington, missing from the typical locales of New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
Naomi Watts is a perfect female lead; beautiful in a way that beautiful used to actually mean something, and properly helpless as should be the case for a terrific terrifying tale. My only complaint with “The Ring” is a tendency to get dull and drag at times, though those occurrences are few in number and are the pitfalls of having an actual plot that the protagonist needs to explore.
“The Ring” is a scary movie, pure and simple. The TV scene (and you will know what I mean when you watch it) is one of the scariest scenes in any horror movie I have ever watched. If you like to be frightened, give it a shot – and try it with the lights turned off.
by – Matt Christopher
