Hideo Nakata quickly follows the acclaimed horror Ring with this sequel, further developing Koji Suzuki�s best-selling stories of the mysterious, vengeful ghost Sadako. Rarely does a sequel better it�s predecessor but this time Ring 2 probably edges out the original, while actually building on the myth and making the series as a whole even more impressive. Whereas Ring deliberately accumulated unease until it�s terrifying finale, Ring 2 is more consistently unnerving with several more set-piece scares. That�s not to say the fear factor is cheapened, although the ending is slightly disappointing, the exact inverse of the first film.
Timewise it follows almost straight on from the original plot, with Reiko having been missing only a few days and the investigation into Ryuji and the discovery of the corpse in the well in its early stages. However the story centres this time on Ryuji�s girlfriend Mai (Miki Nakatani, who spends the film in rabbit-caught-in-headlights mode) who teams up with one of Reiko�s fellow reporters to try and solve the murders of the previous film. The rumour of the cursed videotape is still rife in the local highschools, but a slightly less fantastical explanation is offered this time, that the tape is merely a vessel for Sadako�s fury. However, the tape is not the only vessel, as people who have survived her wrath begin to exhibit psychic powers.
The plot is frankly silly at times, but if you roll with it and just accept some of the more fanciful notions (water absorbs hatred?) this is a truly unnerving film, with several standout scenes of measured frights in which Nakata makes a woman brushing her hair or a schoolgirl shaking her head into the kind of nerve shredders that make you never want to sleep again. This is accompanied by a cracking soundtrack of harsh, grating sounds with underlying whispers that roll through the cinema like the rumbles of an awakening demon. Sadako remains as elusive as ever, and therefore even a glimpse of her long black hair is enough to make your blood run cold.
Unfortunately, there is nothing to quite match Ring�s denouement and the final time we see Sadako in the well is not as scary as you would hope, although you only see a waxwork replica of her face to slightly salvage her enigmatic power to scare. Despite this, there are more than enough frights to be had here and despite taking a very different approach to the original is a worthy addition to the series - but if you haven�t seen Ring then this will make very little sense at all. |
