Average Rating: 
Rating: - Ringu vs. The Ring
What is the matter with all you Scaredy-Cats? Ringu was not sheer terror and niether was The Ring! Ringu was a pretty cool movie because it did not have as much disturbing images or disturbing music like The Ring! The Ring sucked! Every single review about The Ring babbled about how terrifying it was! One guy even said:"I went to go see this with all my friends and it scared me to where I smashed my televsion so Samara could not come get me!" Well, maybe he said something a little different but most people were that dramatic!!!! Ringu was not scary either! It was an interesting and fun suspense film! I mean it did not even show the thing running towards the teenager girl at the first part and The Ring did but I loved Ringu and I hated The Ring! Whoever is 25 and booth of these movies scared you you are weird because I just turned 11 and I think they are silly... Except for Ringu! If you want a movie that might scare you do not get The Ring or Ringu- get Stephen King's Carrie! But if you want a good suspense film get Ringu not The disturbing movie called The Ring! I mean the commercial even said this stupid qoute! "Before you die, You see the ring!" How stupid is that?
Rating:  - That's all well and good, but what about this version?
I'll be the great reconciliator here - I have heard such vehement reviews of this Ring and the American "The Ring", each taking one side or the other, but I liked them both! I saw the Japanese version (Ringu) first and liked it so much I decided to see the American version. I was very happy to find that the American version decided to take a different approach, though in the parts that were the same as the Japanese, they often were the same shot for shot. It was very masterfully done, I thought.
The Japanese version will probably suit you better if you 1)Don't mind subtitles 2)Don't mind references to supernatural phenomena (although, really, folks, if Sadako/Samara can psychically transmit her hatred to video tape, you have to allow for some psychic material elsewhere!). The Japanese version is not a "shocker" kind of horror, but a creepy-crawly kind. It did make me a little afraid of TVs for a while.
So my question is, those of you that have seen the Universal Studios DVD rerelease, how is this version? I have seen an older version, and am curious how this DVD stacks up compared to the European releases.
Rating: - The Greater Half of the 'Ring-u'
'Ringu' tells the tale of a video tape that, for reasons unknown, that kills you seven days after you watch it. Reiko, a journalist, is greeted by a death in the family one day. Her teenage niece died mysteriously one day, leaving no trace as to why. She soon discovers that three other of her niece's close friends died on the same day as her. Upon further investigation, she finds that the four teenagers had something in common: they had all seen a cryptic video tape. The trail leads her to the tape itself and, out of curiosity, watches it. The urban legend is proven to be a lot more real than she ever expected and soon, Reiko is on a race against time to decipher the mysteries of the tape. 'Ringu' (viewed at home) achieves a sense of fear throughout the movie in the way it 'connects' with the viewer. How obvious can it get? Though not a tape, you're watching the DVD on a TV. This paranoia adds to the scares constantly.
With sparse use of any real 'special effects,' the film is able to ground its otherworldly story to reality, something few modern horror films are able to do.
The acting is great and the dialogue, or at least the translated script for the subtitles, never got repetitive. The actress for Reiko does a good job as the tense heroine, while the male lead actor (sorry, his name escapes me) contrasts very well with her as her often cool and relaxed ex-husband.
The music chills to the bone, particularly the main theme (plays on the DVD main menu), which is just a creepy concoction of strummed guitar strings. I sat there, letting the whole menu run its course as the ambience it gave off made my blood run ice cold. 'Ringu's great utilization of sound astounded me as well, using bursts of utter cacophony to add new layers of fright to already surprsingly horrifying scenes.
Quite simply, this movie impressed me in every way possible. Now, on to 'Ringu'/'The Ring' comparisons... 'Ringu' operates on a single word: subtlety.
It delivers the scares without convoluting the process. Fear without frills, as I say. They scare you moreso on a mental level, forever burning in (some cases only) a dread of TV's.
Take, for example, the tape itself. In 'Ringu,' it really is just a bunch of forboding images, adding only clues to plot. Short and sweet. In comparison, 'The Ring' goes for the throat. It does try to scare you at a mental level as well, but it is somewhat bogged down by its own attempt of quick shocks.
The tape, in this version, is much longer and thought it is adapted for plot purposes, certain parts were unnecessary and served only to provide more reasons fo disturbing imagery later on. Most importantly, one character in particular was altered in a way I didn't like, but which take is better really just depends on personal taste.
That would be the journalist's son. In 'Ringu,' he had this creepy robotic feel, speaking only when needed and showing a frightening air of maturity.
However, in 'The Ring,' though well-acted, he is portrayed as the 'cliche' horror film child. He spouts out insightful but scary things that he should know nothing about at his age (ie the little boy in 'Signs'). This take removes the vulnerablity his counterpart had in 'Ringu,' causing you to care less whether or not he dies. Ending my comparison, I believe 'Ringu' is the superior film, though both in and of themselves are great. Now to end with the DVD package:
The main menu keeps in line with the film's simple way of fright, using the main theme as its backgroud music. The scene division is well-done. The 5.1 remaster of the film looks great as well. My only complaint is the disappointing lack of the 'Ringu' trailers. I say 'Ringu' is a sure buy and I guarantee (to most people) that you will not be disappointed. Just don't come crying to me when you develop an unhealthy fear of televisions!
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