The Ring (2002)

I’m a fan of classic horror. Even classic modern day horror like Scream, Get Out, The Conjuring, It Follows, and A Quiet Place, just to name a few. And, in honor of Daveigh Chase, I thought it would be a neat little idea to finally watch The Ring. I’ve wanted to see this movie for years but for some reason, I never found the right time for it until now. I must say, after finishing this, not a bad experience. I went into this not expecting to be scared that much, because I thought it would offer me the same predictable formula that I’ve seen before. While it did, it actually scared me to the point of pissing myself, so that’s a good way to break the formula. When it comes to someone like me, I’m always hoping for a little unpredictability now and then, and that’s exactly what I got. I won’t lie, I am kind of ashamed that it took me this long to finally check this film out but I’m glad I did, because I can see why fans of the horror genre like to talk about this one. I have more to say, so let’s pop in the tape and hope it doesn’t kill the rest of us.

     The film follows a journalist (Naomi Watts) who investigates a mysterious videotape rumored to cause the death of anyone who watches it within seven days. As she digs deeper, she uncovers a disturbing trail of clues that grows increasingly personal and dangerous. Like I said before, it had the same formula that I’ve seen in horror films before, with tropes like creepy children, an urban legend, a cursed artifact, and the unstoppable monster. Normally, a captious overthinking critic like myself would feel frustrated or disengaged when it comes to these tropes, but I am open to them if they find a way to make them work somehow. Well, I can certainly say that they work here. Despite their annoyingly obvious familiarities, I was able to just sit down and enjoy how they used them in this flick. The cast wasn’t half bad either. The rest includes Martin Henderson, David Dorfman, Brian Cox, Jane Alexander, and the late great Daveigh Chase, who nailed her terrifying performance. Another thing I liked was how the film was also a mystery and I’m quite the sucker when it comes to that particular genre, too. I should also probably mention that this movie is an American remake of the 1998 Japanese film Ringu. I haven’t seen that one and I’m not sure I will but as far as remakes go, I thought the American version was a damn near good one. However, I will admit that there were some annoyances. The dialogue at times felt more vague than my own communication style, the logic could be very questionable, and I thought there was a lack of character depth. Eh, despite these obvious irritations, I still had a good time and that’s what counts.

     As far as horror movies go, this doesn’t come anywhere close to being one of the best that I’ve ever seen. I don’t even think that I would put it in my top 10. But it still managed to get a few good scares in me and it shows what a huge loss Daveigh Chase was. Having said that, I would have to give this film a 7 out of 10. If you’re a fan of the horror genre, then go ahead and check this movie out if you haven’t already. Pretty average, but still a decent scary tape – if tapes were still a thing.