The Gudge 2
The Grudge 2 is the second film in the series for American audiences, and was directed by Takashi Shimizu (director of the original series) so there should be some of the original elements from Juon (the original Japanese version) in this film. I will tell you we as Americans got lucky with our sequel in comparisons to Japans. Their sequel follows a "TV Entertainment Ghosthunter"-esk show entering the house to find out what really happened. Thankfully we get to skip over that crap, maybe they'll save it for the Grudge 4.
But before we get into The Grudge, we need a little Grudge refresher. In The Grudge, Kayako Saeki was a young Japanese woman who developed an unhealthy obsession with an American professor working in Japan. She chronicled her obsession in her diary, which was found by her husband Takeo. Takeo broke his wife's neck, drowned their son Toshio in the bathtub, and cut their cat's throat. As he attempted to place his wife in an upstairs closet, her hair came down and strangled him. Kayako's vengeful spirit haunted the house, using Toshio and their cat to destroy anyone who came into contact with them, except for a young American social worker named Karen Davis (Sarah Michelle Gellar).
The Grudge 2 finds Karen in a hospital after attempting to burn down the house following the death of her boyfriend. It then starts three different story lines that follow the lives of Karen's sister Aubrey, three schoolgirls living in Japan, and a family living in Chicago in different time periods. This is actually the most irritating part of the film, as it is unfortunately not done well. Throughout half the movie your trying to figure out if you are supposed to know that the stories are connected or not via the characters, but you haven’t been exposed to them long enough to even tell them apart. I wasn’t sure if people were in Japan, then in Chicago, then in California. It generally lost me.
It could have been better by joining the 3 storylines more obviously or more distinctly separate out the styles either through “character acting” or by creating visual distinctions between the 3 story lines somehow. Just saying 3 different locations, doesn’t mean crap. This is actually my only true pet peeve of the film. To be honest, this film should have been sliced together with the first film for 1 cohesive horror masterpiece, which would have been a slightly longer horror movie which would have probably made more money if they did.
Another grudge I had with the original flick was that I never understood how the people were attacked when they weren't in the house anymore. And why the hell she would attack when the husband is the crazy guy that killed them. It really seemed like a poor storyline for someone to follow, but in the Grudge 2 I had all the answers and it started to make complete sense with why she, Kayako, was murdering people. Of which I won’t spoil, just incase you do decide to rent it.
Final Thoughts: Grudge 1: 5/10, Grudge 2: 4/10, Together, 7/10
Let me explain the rating for today, I have individually given a rating for each movie. As if you would have just decided to pick it up without necessarily seeing the other. Then the third rating, as it suggests is if you happen to watch them both together, as what I would suggest if your going to invest your time in the Grudge 2.
Ultimately, I prefer The Grudge 2, only in the fact that everything I hated about the original was solved in the sequel. I wouldn’t suggest the grudge 2 unless you have seen the original.
I’m not a big fan of the 3 separate storylines, I think it would have worked just as well to do it linearly, and then it allowed for the Chicago storyline to be utilized for “the true sequel”.
Labels: 4/10, 5/10, 7/10, Japan, The Grudge, The Grudge 2
