The Grudge

[Susan]

Anyone seen the trailer for this? I wasn't sure what to think, it looked like a japanese ripoff like "The Eye" or "Ringu" but starring sarah michelle gellar? wtf

The director appears to have directed a japanese version of Grudge followed by a sequel but i've never heard of it...i wonder if it did well in japan or if this is just another american film riding on the wave of remaking japanese thrillers. This seems to be his first american film as well. I suspect everyone will race to find the japanese version of this movie to compare if it becomes popular.

Trailer

thoughts?

[Chopper]

"just another american film riding on the wave of remaking japanese thrillers."

i'll say that i'm getting pretty tired of this. i love Asian cinema but i wish we would quit just re-hashing Japanese films. i did like the Ring a lot but we have so many talented filmmakers in America, especially in genre filmmaking. why not pass the buck to some starry eyed kid here with some good ideas? maybe it's just me but it seems almost every new horror movie is contracted out to an overseas director.

(ps-it's 6:30 am as i write this in case it sounds really stupid.)

[The Burgomaster]

The Japanese version of THE GRUDGE had a different title (it's in Japanese . . . I can't remember the name of it, but it's "JU-WA" or something like that).

[Mr_Vindictive]

Ju-On is the original Japanese title, and it has been getting amazing reviews here in the states.

If I'm not mistaken, I believe that Lions Gate released it in limited areas, and it should be coming out on DVD within the next month or so.  There is a pretty good review of the film here:

http://joblo.com/arrow/ju-on.htm

I hope to pick up the original on DVD soon, and will probably end up seeing the remake at the theater.

[Max Gardner]

I find it interesting that the director of the original film is directing the American remake as well.  Seems to have potential, but the director has said in various interviews that he's had to change the style and pacing of the film somewhat to appeal to American audiences, which is generally a bad sign.  Here's hoping it's not a staggering disappointment like The Ring or The Eye.

[Dave Munger]

That meowing child CGI thing seemed really effective the first time I saw the trailer, the false quality of the face came off as ghostliness. The second time, it just looked cartoonish. So that's one effect that would probably be a lot more effective in the movie if they hadn't used it in the trailer. Probably felt they had to though, if it's the only big special effect they had.

[Prophet Tenebrae]

SMG in it is a big mistake - it essentially turns it into another "I'm not really Buffy anymore and am trying to escape the-" it's all she ever will be given the films she's been in and her inability to act.