It was established some years ago, that Asian (and predominantly Japanese) horror is the next hot thing in Hollywood. This process was originally initiated by the American remake of The Ring. Several other titles are currently in the making, including Walter Salles’ (Central do Brasil, The Motorcycle Diaries) Dark Water, starring Jennifer Connelly and The Ring 2, and Tom Cruise’s plan for a possible remake of The Eye. The Grudge looked interesting on paper, also considering the return of its director Takashi Shimizu. Alas, although some elements that made the original, Ju-on, a great contribution to the fascinating Japanese scary movie catalogue remain intact, The Grudge, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, does not seem capable of surpassing mediocrity.

A young American nurse residing in Tokyo (Gellar) is asked to replace a missing colleague to help out an older, apparently demented woman, Mrs. Williams (Grace Zabriskie, who looks a lot like Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream, I initially had the two of them mixed up). Mrs. Williams lost her son and daughter-in-law, after they were brutally murdered in the house in which she still lives. Very soon the viewer is made aware of the fact the house possesses an evil curse, that is passed on to its victims after they experience extreme fear or anger.

The original Ju-on is far more fragmented than this smooth American remake, and consists of several separate storylines, call them episodes, in which all victims die in a similar way as a consequence of the evil curse. Director Shimizu secures part of the atmosphere of the original by setting the story in Tokyo and using the exact same set from the 2000 original. The alienating Japanese atmosphere and shock moments may have their effect on American and European audiences, but are pretty standard if you are used to seeing Asian horror flicks.

Shimizu seems to be tied to a commercial American production company consequently going for the cheap thrill. He wastes some of the potential shock moments with badly timed sound-effects and you don’t need to be a clairvoyant to predict the outcome of the situations the characters often find themselves in.Although effective at first, it becomes, however, annoyingly predictable and formulaic after several repeats. It does make you wonder whether this movie would have been much worse in the hands of an American director; Shimizu’s typical Japanese touches do contribute to a more intense experience and keep you on the edge of your seat, especially during the first thirty minutes.

Gellar has, to date, never proven herself to be an Oscar-worthy actress, and with The Grudge she adds yet another lean performance to her rather lean resume. Her inclusion in the film shows rather evidently, that the screenplay was modified to American taste. This clashes, at times, with the explicit Japanese imagery. Somehow, Shimizu’s timing in the original Ju-on was a lot better and efficient compared to his American remake. This tends to be over-explanatory, as opposed to the original that remained mystical until the end. In the US this flick had an extremely succesful opening weekend and a sequel has already been scheduled.

In short: although not really lousy, mainly because of Shimizu’s alienating Japanese touch, The Grudge does not live up to the expectations Shimizu created after his ravishing 2000 original.

Directed by: Takashi Shimizu
Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr, Graze Zabriskie, Bill Pullman
Runtime: 96′
Release Dates: US: 22 October, UK: 15 November, The Netherlands: 6 January (2005)
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