The Grudge

Rating:
Summary: Do not visit this house!
Review: "The Grudge (2004)" is based on the Japanese horror film "Ju-on (The Grudge.)" Japanese Director Takashi Shimizu directed both films.

"The Grudge (2004)" is filmed with American actors. Bill Pullman, Jason Behr, Clea Duvall (Currently in Carnivale.) and Grace Zabriski were sent off to Tokyo to work with Takashi Shimizu. Sarah Michelle Gellar is used as the cover popularity, recognized name, but plays a supporting part to the haunted house. A never-ending curse is thrust upon this house because of what happened there. Do not step inside this house!

Takashi Shimizu utilizes time segments to develop this film into an ending climax. The film starts out in the middle, then procedures to go back and forth from present to past. I enjoyed this horror film. This film is a break from all special effects movies that Hollywood seems to force upon us. Yes a movie can still be made without them! Was I scared? Sure. The director does take the viewers point of view in mind. I just can't get that scream and little boy creature out of my mind.

This horror film takes you back to the old days of filming horror films. No CGI special effects here. Everything you see in the film is real. Okay, I found this out by viewing the bonus features. I strongly recommend viewing the bonus features for filming techniques and technical applications applied. American horror films and Japanese horror films are completely polar opposites. An American haunted house is totally different than a Japanese haunted house. I don't want to give away too much, but the Japanese haunted house is ruthless and relentless.


Rating:
Summary: The best horror in years!
Review: At first i have to admit that i did not expect something special from this movie ,but let me tell you this is one of the greatest horror movies of this decade, every second you will jumping out of your seat in panic. i can also say that you probably should not see this movie by yourself !!! This movie is brilliantly put together for the altimate scare, you will never sleep the same again !

Rating:
Summary: Pleasantly creepy fluff; lacks depth and staying-power
Review: I haven't seen Ju-On, but though I generally prefer to start with the original, I figured the experience wasn't likely to differ that much. Same director, same locations. Same basic story. And with this version, I get Sarah Michelle Gellar--though a sadder, more chastened Sarah Michelle Gellar I've never seen. Her character was badly in need of a Prozac through the whole film. It was like Angel had just gone bad again.

Some people have complained about the disjointed storytelling. For the most part, this worked fine for me. It added a level of drama and mystery to the whole thing that we wouldn't have had if the story had been chronological. We're not only interested in what is happening, but in why.

Unfortunately, the pay-off is not so grand. The forces that called these onryou--these vengeful spirits--into being are slightly questionable, and the way they function--especially outside the confines of the house--is never clear.

That said, the movie had some creepy atmospherics and a deft hand with the jump scenes. It didn't haunt me like the best horror movies do. I watched it at night...in the dark...alone. And I slept just fine afterwards. But I had some spine-tingling moments while watching it. I don't feel compelled to seek out the original as I might have done if this one had blown me away, and I probably won't be going for a second viewing, but it was a decent enough way to spend an hour and a half of my time.

Rating:
Summary: Good movie, disjointed.
Review: I really enjoyed the movie. It creeped me out and scared me which is why I watch horror movies in the first place.

But it was edited in a weird fashion and we all had trouble figuring out what in the heck was going on as it began. We kept backing up and replaying scenes too. There was not enough character development. I wanted to see more of Sarah Michelle Gellar's character "Karen". I enjoyed watching her figure out the history of the house.

Rating:
Summary: The Grudge- pretty good time!
Review: I thought this movie was pretty good. I saw it at the theatre with a group of my friends and there were a lot of parts where the movie "popped" out at you and made the whole audience jump. I love that. It was a great movie to see if you get scared of your closet or noises in your house at night. I mostly found this movie funny, however, because I tend not to get scared of movies anymore. I did jump at the "pop out" scenes though.

Rating:
Summary: A good scare!!!! ( even for a horror movie snob)
Review: I went into this movie expecting to laugh at it but ended up getting a good scare.
The thing that makes this movie is truely the music - very scarry. (Luuuuuved iiiiiit!!!)
I LOVE a good scare!
I am a horror movie SNOB - (just read my other reviews).
Its been many, many movies since I've found one that actually gave me the goosebumps and chills I was looking for - (I certainly didn't expect to find one with BTVS in it).
(Joxer from Xena Warrior Princess is also in the movie but he's actually pretty good in the bit role like he was in the Spider Man movies.)
Some of the visual effects are prime, some are cheezy - love the monster in the bed scene!!!

Rating:
Summary: THE WORST MOVIE EVER...SAVE 2 HOURS OF YOU LIFE!!!
Review: The dumbist movie I have ever seen...This movie is really a comedy. The mother ghost sounds like she drank a 2 liter of coke because all she does is burp through the whole movie!!! And the son is a catlike freak who walks around meowing at people. The special effects are a rip-off of the ring and darkness falls. And you better watch out because if you are bad... You will disappear through your own BED!!! I have watched horror movies my whole life and I have to say this is the worst ever. Please save your time and money, I can only wonder how bad boogieman must be.

Rating:
Summary: A Movie That Should Be Watched More Than Once
Review: The Grudge is quite a creepy little thriller. As I prgressed into this movie, I thought it would be a decent movie. The opening was totally unexpected and you'll ask yourself "why". Sooner in this movie you will find the answers to the beginning. But later on you will find yourself asking more questions, than getting answers. The film is quite confusing and you have to pay close attention. The movie switches from the past to the present without you noticing it at times. Its a very tricky little film. Also pay close to little details you may notice they will help you understand the ending better. This is a film that should be watched twice. After I walked out of the theather, I was questioning myself. I did not understand the film, neither did my friends. Later on, I thought about the film again and thought I pretty much understood it now. Then when it came out on DVD, I bought it and watched it again. After I watched it the 2nd time, I fully understood it. I realized I missed things from the 1st time I watched it. So if you wanna figure out the mystery to this film, you got to pay close attention to it. Overall, it was pretty creepy, but not quite scary.

Rating:
Summary: The Grudge: A Confusing, Scary, Weird Movie
Review: The Grudge was a very confusing movie! I had to watch the DVD twice to understand the main concept!

PROS
- A Very Scary movie
- Very Excellent Graphic Effects
- A Great Performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar
- A great remake

CONS
- The scary parts of the movie are not very original
- The movie can be very confusing at times
- Some of the images in the movie are a little too disturbing for my taste

BOTTOM LINE
- "The Grudge" was a good movie, but it wasn't flawless

BUY THIS?
- I recommend that you rent this movie first.

Thank you for reading this review! I hope I helped out!

Rating:
Summary: An extremely unerving horror film
Review: Though this movie was not a major hit with critics,and some people were only luke warm to its delivery,i was intrigued from the first preview i saw.Sarah Michelle Gellar makes a defying leap from her usual Buffy Slayer roles,and plays the scared victiom of this film.Movies like The Ring,Mothman Prophecies etc.base the horror on the human mind,what you believe even though you can't see it and are any of these things real.Well even though this movie is very similar to the formentioned you do see a lot more than what you would expect from this type of film.There is no extreme gore,killers or even huge creatures with razor sharp teeth,just people who definately look like they have something to be ticked off about,and there color is somewhat off,pale or even blue,with black eyes,which make for some really scary images.The one floating person(demon,ghost)what have you is about the scariest looking thing i have ever witnessed on film(only in my dreams).The eerie sounds they make is even worse,and often makes you want to hide and close your ears,me being 29 doesnt matter,i still felt that way.The story line may be cliche even though i won't reveal that information,this does make for one of the scariest movies i've ever seen,it definately answers the question of,what was that sound,what is under the bed?Whats in the closest?Whats in the Attic?among many others.So watch this film bravely in the dark,and see how much you sleep tonight.