| Ju-on Posted: Finally after a long wait, North America sees the release of "Ju-On: The Grudge" on DVD, no doubt meant to coincide with the American remake called "The Grudge" starring Sarah Michelle Gellar which will be released in theatres this fall. Ju-On belongs to the cream of the crop of J-Horror, perhaps the best spooky house horror movie I have ever laid eyes on. Brilliantly directed by Takashi Shimizu, Ju-On is an unrelenting spectacle of spooky sights and sounds that manages to outcreep even the likes of "Ringu" and the Pang Brothers' "The Eye" without even a drop of blood spilt. Interestingly enough, the American Studio responsible for the remake has decided to enlist the services of Shimizu himself to direct the remake and to set the action in Japan alas with a mostly American cast. The remake will have a very tough act to follow if it whishes to outspook the original, however this has been achieved before with "The Ring".
The prologue shows us what led to the house becoming haunted; a man who believes his wife had an affair kills her in an uncontrolled rage then kills himself. The couple's young son, who witnesses the savage act, disappears and is never to be seen again. Fast forward several years: the house is now inhabited by the Tokunaga family of three, a husband and wife and the husband's old frail mother. While husband and wife are away on a trip, the nearby welfare center sends volunteer social worker Rika to look after the house and the old mother. While cleaning the house, she witnesses ghostly apparitions that drive her away from the house. Soon after, when the tenants of the house return from their trip they too are terrorized by the vengeful spirits of the dead family.
Several factors are responsible for making "Ju-On" such an utterly scary film.... Director Shimizu for one is a master at building intensity in a scene through the use of rising ominous music and creepy visuals. But the way he does it is very unique. In the vast majority of haunted house movies, it usually involves one character seeing a supernatural entity and then said supernatural entity disappearing before anyone else can see it therefore making the witness appear crazy. Not here. The ghosts here can be seen by ALL no matter what, making them seem all the more dangerous and frightening. Also, the viewer is always kept on edge since the ghost of the little boy keeps appearing in all sorts of unexpected places like in windows, mirrors and myriad reflections and corners of the screen. And then there is the house, this is just a regular-looking house in a suburb, giving the film an element of realism seldom seen in these types of movies. I find that setting the events in your average suburban house is a much more effective scare tactic since after all how many of us have ever lived or visited a giant gothic mansion? This hits much close to home.
Ju-on weaves a complex storyline with numerous continuity jumps and gaps that give it a certain Lynchian feel. Those continuity jumps are very confusing for the first-time viewer (Huh, does Rika die twice?) but it's also one of the things that makes the film stand so well to repeat viewings because it does make sense the second time around. Which is not to say the film is without its problems. Although I found very few flaws with the execution of the film, certain things simply don't make much sense such as the spirits following people in places outside of the house and also if the house is history to so many people dying of fright because of ghosts how come new tenants keep moving in? It must have a very convincing real estate agent looking after it! Still, minor misgivings for a tremendous horror film. As for the remake I'll welcome it with open arms; many on the internet have addressed resistance about the casting of Gellar as the central character. I for one believe she'll be fabulous. This is a role where looking scared is of paramount importance and Gellar has shown us time and time again in Buffy how convincingly she can put a frightened face on. And besides with original director Shimizu at the helm, what could possibly go wrong? |
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