Dark Water - Japan

          Director:  Hideo Nakata
          Year:  2002
          Plot:  “A mother and her 6 year old daughter move into a creepy apartment whose every surface is permeated by water.”


          I have been wanting to watch this movie since I read The Ring by Koji Suzuki.  This is of course based off Dark Water, one of his other books.  I was finally able to see it, and I am happy that I got to.  It turns out that you can really tell that it was written by Koji Suzuki.
          This movie wasn’t scary in anyway.  The thing is though that it really didn’t have to be for me.  I had already expected not to be scared.  Many people had already told me it wasn’t going to be, so I wasn’t too surprised. I was also told though that it was also a very slow movie.  This one though didn’t really come into play.  Sure it takes awhile to get to the resolution, but it certainly has a lot of things to keep you interested in what is going on.  At no point did I consider turning off the movie because it was slow.
          The ending to this was kind of sad actually.  This isn’t something that is unheard of in Asian horror though.  I wasn't as surprised to find a sad ending rather than those I am used to in many American horror movies.

          I do suggest this movie to many.  If you want something scary though, I suggest you save this for another time.  It is a really good movie, but it lacks any real scary parts.  This is one that you should watch when you just need something to occupy you, not something really scary.

Ringu - Japan

          Director:  Hideo Nakata

          Year:  1998

          Plot:  "There is a video tape that brings about your death seven days after watching it.  After her niece dies, reporter Asakawa Reiko starts to investigate.  By doing so she brings the curse of the tape down upon her and her family.  With only days to live, it is a race against time to find the cause of the curse and stop it."

          Like many Americans, I watched the remake before ever even knowing there was an original.  Mind you this was before I even had the money to start buying Japanese CDs.  After finding out there was an original Japanese version I desperately wanted to see it.  The remake was so stupidly hilarious that I figured the original couldn't be any worse, and I am glad I was right.

          In the original, there is a much better storyline.  In the remake, they tried to make it scary and lost a lot of the key details that make the story so interesting.  Like Asakawa's niece trying to help protect her cousin.  Little things like that keep the story pretty well rounded.  You have the ghost out killing people, yet you also have one trying to help.

          I feel that they lost so much of the story trying to make it "American".  I understand things needed to be changed because some aspects just wouldn't fit, but by doing so you destroy the feel of it.  I found the tape, the ghost and pretty much everything else about the remake to be pretty average.  It didn't elicit a single scare from me, scream, jump or even a sped up heartbeat.  It was still an okay movie and I own it (didn't buy it though, it was a gift) simply for the fact that it is "horror", but I wouldn't buy it or even pay the money to have seen it in a theatre.  Ringu however I most certainly would.

          There's definitely something about Asian horror movies that Americans just can't mimic.  It has to be the build up of a scare.  American horror has a tendency to be about the scare and that's it, and they will do pretty much anything to get it, you know the loud noises to startle you.  That is so very common and just not scary.  All that does is keep me awake during the rest of the pointless movie (take Nightmare on Elm Street's new remake, a total snooze fest while watching it in the theatre yet it wouldn't let me sleep).

          Skip the remake if you haven't already seen it and instead watch Ringu it has a much cleaner storyline and isn't muddled with all those nonsense additives (like the horses, that never added anything meaningful).  Better yet, read the book by Koji Suzuki.  The little twist is really enjoyable, seen as neither movie used it.  The book is so much better and has the complete story on what is taking place, and let me tell you this, if the tape had been anything like it was in the book, even I would be scared.