I think I'll start review movies that I see so I can recommend good ones and tell others which not to see. Let me know if you like that, first of all. My rating system will be 0-5, and 0 being the worst possible, and 5 being great(est). If you haven't seen the movie, that I am reviewing, and wish to see it in the future, don't read my review, because I will have spoilers in it. That being said, don't blame me if I spoil the movie for you. I warned you here.
I just watched
The Grudge. It is a suspence thriller set in modern day Tokyo. The main character is an American exchange student who is in need of a public service credit so she volunteers at a nursing/house keeping service for people who are handicaped. This Movie tends to jump from past to present a lot, if one doesn't watch it attentively, one would get lost or confused (as my friend did). From being to end there is some from of suspence or action. It is more of a "who-did-it" supernatural thriller than a "slasher" thriller, that I was expecting. It does deal with westerners in the far east and the director makes note of the culture differences and if one pays close attention one can see subtle, yet deliberate, signs of xenophobia of the Japanese people towards westerners. For example, near the begining the main female character approaches a Japanese mother and her child on the street and, she smiles at the child and the mother pulls the child away for her as though she was protecting the child from the harmless American girl. I thought it was good to see a Asian setting for a change and see how they modernize but keep to their old customs and style of homes, etc. The main character is played by Sarah Michelle Gellar, a Jewess, and I thought this would be a real stinker, but suprising she did alright in this movie. There is no sign, however that she is playing a jewish girl in this film, so I am guessing her character is a normal American exchange student. The story deals with a Japanese lore that if a person is killed violently and emotionally that in the place of death there will be left a curse, and whoever comes in contact with it will be consumed by said curse. This particular curse happened when a Japanese man found out that his wife was having an affair, by reading through her journal. He went into a rage, he killed her and stuffed her body in the attic, and then precieded to drowned their boy and the family cat. Then he hung himself. That day the wife's american lover, comes to see her and too his sock he finds out what transpired in the home. The next day he thows himself from his appartment balcany, that is where the movie starts. It seems he killed himselves, then one finds out that things weren't what they seemed because you were witnissing him through the point of view of his wife, who didn't enter the home. She doesn't see the curse the drives him to plumit to is demise. These three victims (mother, boy, and cat) appear in the home and haunt it, and hunt anyone who enter the home, eventually leading to their deaths. Eventually an American family moves into this same home with their disabled mother. The curse gets them and the house keeper, Yoko, and then Sarah's character is sent in as a replacement to take care of the ill mother, not knowing what has transpired in the home. Eventually it all comes crashing down when the curse catches up to all new people who entered them home (ill mom and her daughter, the police, the employer of yoko, etc.) and it cuminates with Sarah's character and her boyfriend in the home and ends when she trys to set fire to the house, and lift the curse. The end is when she goes to see the body of her boyfriend in the morgue, which is where she meets the curse, come to get her. The police mentioned in Japanese as she walked into the morgue that the house was saved, she didn't notice that, because her Japanese isn't so good (they established that early on).
So I thought it had a good suspence and supernatural thrill. Good story line, and well placed together, even though it jumped through time a bit - adding a supernatural flavour to it. There was some parts where the spirit of the curse was seen by me as being a bit lacking, other than that, I thought the boy spirit was better the the mother. Something more scary about children who are dead. I must add that I like it when the evil lives to kill another day. It always makes it more unexpected. Most movies have the good guys saving the day and happy endings, it's good to see a change.
Over all I give it a
3
Story line I give a
4
Suspence I give a
4
Acting I give a
2
FX and Gore I give a
2
So I recomend this movie, it aint bad if you like supernatural thrillers. I don't think it is as good as the Ring, or something of that caliber, but it is worth renting. Questions, Comments, or others would like to review it, feel free.
Sunday, February 6th, 2005
Timo's Movie Review: The Grudge
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