Ju-On: The Grudge 2 (2003)

Smart Far Eastern horror uses chills, psychology and subtle intelligence to place itself a cut above many of its peers.

Ju-on 2 is obviously a sequel to Ju-on (The Grudge), a fairly reasonable if perhaps not brilliant chiller from the Orient, in which a murder had caused the house it occurred in to host a curse as a result of the slaying.

Following on from this, Ju-on 2 uses the same trick as seen in the likes of Magnolia whereby a bunch of victims, related to one another in some way, suffer at the hands of said curse.

Indeed, this is much like a compendium of tales, focusing on around 6 victims whose lives becomes inextricably linked as a result of circumstance, all of which harks back to the original house.

However, rather than outlining the finer details of the plot, it seems fairer to explain *why* this is such a good effort from Asia compared to so many of its really rather derivative kin such as Phone, Eye etc.

Certainly this also has more than a homage to Ring, and could be tenuous accused of slight plagiarism given many of the utterly blatant similarities, so what makes it a cut above the others?

Well, one of the main strengths here is some fantastic psychological trickery. The direction itself is fantastically conducive to it, and without giving away the exact nature of the manipulation of the viewer going on here, it's fair to say that it does a pretty good job of conveying the same kind of 'wrongness' that Ring exuded. There are plenty of moments here which create a genuine chill such is their effective defying of how we believe the laws of physics and biology work. When an event goes against all the worldly beliefs you have set in stone, it makes you take notice. Furthermore, given the distinctly psychological nature of much of Ju-on 2, it truly comes across as utterly twisted like some kind of awful nightmarish trip (Unlike Audition's frankly baffling last 3rd) but one which doesn't leave the viewer confused.

There are also a number of subtle tricks in evidence, many of which don't become apparent till later, all of which genuinely gathered an impressed reaction from me.

I am not going to pretend this is a terrifying movie, because to me, while there were certainly moments which got the adrenaline going a little, it is not exactly all that scary if you're a fan of these movies. Basically, we've seen it all before.

Nonetheless, as critical and harsh as that sounds, it still manages to entertain extremely well despite it, because it uses its own unique brand of originality to compliment the obvious nods to other movies.

Certainly one of the best Eastern horrors I've seen.

Fmovies: This has got to be THE most scary film I have ever seen. Even more scary than the original The Ring. A must see if you like having you adrenaline racing. It starts as an ordinary, not-so-interesting kind a movie, but it only takes 15 min before you realize there is a deeper meaning behind it all. After that its all fear, and you soon begin to fear everything.

This film is the scariest film i've ever seen in my whole life. It is miles scarier than the first one. Usually when you watch a sequel to a really good film it is crap. This film is such an exception to that rule it is unbelievable. This film takes J-Horror to a whole new level. The story is very good although a bit confusing with the time jumps and everything, but you can kind of get the gist of it before the movie ends. The Last scene in the hospital has stayed in my mind. It totally freaked me out. I was disappointed that they didn't have a lengthy stairs scene as that is my favourite scene from any horror movie ever. If you were scared at the first film you will be terrified at this one.

Ju-On: The Grudge 2 fmovies. I'm happy to say that, after a slight disappointment with 'Ju On: The Grudge,' the series returns to form with this installment.

Just when you thought Takashi Shimizu had done everything there was to do with 'Ju On,' this third sequel (and second theatrical film) takes things in a slightly new direction...and gives us some of the most terrifying scenes yet.

Yes, Toshio and his Mum are still on the prowl. Yes, the plot is told in the same disjointed segment style. But, without spoiling the surprises, some new and unexpected twists are added to the mythology. And just as expected, there are plenty of images and sounds that will haunt you till your dying day.

I can't wait to see what Shimizu has in store with the fifth film (the American installment) and dread the thought of seeing these images on a big screen!

While driving on the road, the pregnant horror movies actress Kyoko Harase (Noriko Sakai) and her fiancé have a car crash caused by the fiend of Toshio, and Kyoko loses her baby and her fiancé stays in coma. Kyoko was cursed together with all the television crew when she hosted a show in the haunted house where Kayako was brutally murdered by her husband. While each member of the team dies or disappears, Kyoko is informed that she has a three and half month fetus in her womb.

"Ju-on: The Grudge 2" is a very creepy and scary horror movie, based on a Japanese legend, and disclosed in a non-linear screenplay. In the beginning of this sequel, the explanation of the curse is presented again. When a person is killed in a violent way, his or her death generates a curse that will stay in the place where the crime took place. If another person visits the haunted place, he or she will be chased by the fiends till death generating another curse.

Like the first one, this movie impresses because there is no bloody scene, only a tense psychological exploration of the inner fear of human beings for the unknown. The story is very simple and low paced, there are very few special effects, a great use of sound, no gore, but the creepy atmosphere is really frightening. I startled many times while watching this film. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Ju-On, O Grito 2" ("Ju-On, The Scream 2")

I was disappointed by the original but this sequel was much, much better. Everything about it has been improved - the plot, the character development, the direction, the mood, the fear factor. The over all feeling of this film is very very creepy. It's exactly how a ghost story should be. It doesn't give you the kind of scares that make you jump out of your skin like some movies do but what it does give you is a very uneasy and haunting feeling.

The arrangement and fragmentation of script was excellent. It's broken up into separate stories or chapters like the first one but they've played with the time line in this one in a very wonderful way which contributes to the ghostly feeling of the film as a whole. The story with the banging on the wall was a particular favourite of mine, and, I think, pretty genius.

I am so glad I watched this! It has now become one of my favourite Japanese horror films.