THE GRUDGE
(2004)

"There is something not right in this house"

Karen

After moving to Tokyo with her boyfriend Doug (Behr), Karen (Gellar) finds herself a job as a care assistant to an American family living in the city. When she arrives at the house, she finds it in total disarray and Emma (Zabriskie), the elderly woman she supposed to be looking after, struggling on the floor petrified with fright. As she gets Emma back into bed and begins to tidy the house, Karen starts to realise that she is not alone.

The trend of remaking hit Japanese horror movies for American audiences continues but 'The Grudge' is very different.

Instead of hiring a western director and giving the movie a Hollywood shake up, the studio heads at Universal made the best possible decision. They hired the original film's director, Takashi Shimizu. Giving him complete control, the studio allowed the director to basically remake his original movie but exchange some of the Japanese cast with American talent. They also allowed him to film the movie in Tokyo and use the original actors that terrified Far Eastern audiences so comprehensively. Asian cinema is becoming the new hotbed of talent in the Horror genre.

After the success of the Ringu series, Dark Water, The Eye and many others, the Hollywood bigwigs has started to take notice. The Grudge is the first movie from Evil Dead and Spider-Man helmer Sam Raimi's Production Company, Ghost House Pictures and it is the horror maestro that allows Shimizu to bring his story of vengeful spirits to an English speaking audience. The Asian horror theme has moved away from the usual Hollywood horror stance that sees teenagers become the bloody victims of masked killers. Instead they have embraced the supernatural, as extremely evil spirits kill indiscriminately, whatever age or gender. As an alternate to gore and excessive killings, these movies rely on shock scares and genuine creepiness that will send shivers down your spine and make you jump out of your skin. This is a quite refreshing approach that has injected some much-needed freshness into what was becoming a very stale genre.

Shimizu's Japanese original was a low budget affair that contained some good frights and random scares. Now Ghost House has given him the budget and the technical means to push his vision to its visual limits. In a very rare instance, this remake actually improves on the original. While we have to endure the inclusion of American stars, this is a help not a hindrance to the film. He keeps the character driven mini stories but forgoes some of the lesser tales that interrupted the flow of the original. Now the film revolves around Sarah Michelle Gellar's Karen and the Williams family who have moved into the house. The movie still jumps around the timeline, introducing a character and then showing their backstory or involvement with the house, but now the film is far more coherent and logical than the original.

The performances are also better. Sarah Michelle Gellar is still trying to shake the ghost of Buffy but she will insist on acting in films with a supernatural content. Her performance is good with her looking petrified when she needs to be and screaming at all the right moments. Jason Behr, Ted Raimi and Bill Pullman are also good. Returning to their roles from the original, Yuya Ozeki and Takako Fuji as Toshio and Kayako, the angry spirits that haunt the house, now look even more terrifying. The film is mainly about them or their presence and the rest of the cast are just their victims in waiting.

The Grudge is a rare remake that surpasses the original. Even though the backstory could do with more explanation, the plot soul purpose is to scare you and it certainly succeeds in that. It isn't as frightening as The Eye, Ringu or Dark Water but it does have some extremely good jumpy moments. Takashi Shimizu has been given the backing to bring the ultimate version of his movie to the screen and points the way for future Hollywood remakes of hit Asian movies by getting the original director and crew involved.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen with a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtrack, this is an excellent transfer. Takashi Shimizu's re-imagining of his Japanese frightener has never looked so good or scary. The sound is also first rate, as the noise of the ghost fills the speakers and completely terrifies you.

BONUS FEATURES

Cast and Crew Commentary
Producers Sam Raimi and Rob Tapet, screenwriter Stephen Susco and stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr, KaDee Strickland, Clea DuVall and Ted Raimi bring you a very chatty and funny commentary track. All of them are very passionate about the film, their characters and working with Takashi Shimizu. They highlight the differences between the original and the remake and what it was like working in Japan and the cultural differences between Japanese and Hollywood filmmaking. This is a really entertaining commentary track with all of the eight contributors having their say on their experiences with the movie. A

Powerful Rage:Behind the Grudge (48.28 mins)
Split into five parts entitled 'The Birth of the Grudge', 'Myth of the Ju-On', 'Culture Shock: The American Cast in Japan', 'Designing the Grudge house' and 'A new direction: Understanding Takashi Shimizu', these chapters take you behind the scenes of the Grudge and show you how the remake came about. Director Takashi Shimizu, producer Sam Raimi, screenwriter Stephen Susco, production designer Iwao Saito, producer Rob Tapet and stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr, KaDee Strickland, Clea DuVall, Bill Pullman, Ryo Ishibashi, Yoko Maki and Grace Zabriskie talk about all the aspects of the film's production, the reason for remaking the film and the revolutionary approach of having the original Japanese director in charge of the remake. The featurette cover casting, showcase the minimal use of CG, the design of the haunted house and the differences between Japanese and Hollywood filmmaking. These featurettes offer a fascinating insight into the making of the movie and cover most aspects of its production.

Under the Skin with Joseph Leboux, PhD (12.29 mins)
Noted behavioural scientist Joseph Leboux outlines what makes a horror film scary. He outlines how we cope with fear and how the body responds and changes when we experience it. He also explains what are the main stimulants of fear and what he has discovered over his thirty years of research into the field.

OVERALL

With an excellent commentary track and a comprehensive behind the scenes documentary, 'The Grudge' receives a good DVD treatment. Fans of the film will rejoice at the detail of documentary and revel in the amusing commentary track with only a lack of deleted scenes hindering the release. This is a must by for fans and an excellent rental for those of you too scared to watch 'The Grudge' on the big screen.

DVD

Dark Water

The Eye

Ju-On: The Grudge

Ringu

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2004