# The Ring - first impressions



## Unthinkable (Sep 13, 2002)

Turns out all the advanced positive buzz I had read on this one was fairly accurate as I ended up liking it pretty well. I can now see why this film was so well received over in Japan after catching this yesterday at a matinee. The obvious conclusion would be to say that if you liked the Blair Witch Project a lot, you will most likely be inclined to enjoy this one a great deal as well even though the two films are cast from very different molds. Having said that, I think The Blair Witch Project divided moviegoers much moreso with either a black or white loved it or hated it kind of aftertaste at its conclusion which I didn't feel The Ring did at all. A lot of movie critics and fans really didn't care for the herky-jerky amateurish camera motions and off center seemingly random camera angles (also utilized rather effectively in a slightly different way through Robin Williams' character and the small boy using cameras in One Hour Photo) which essentially captured The Blair Witch Projects minimalist essence in its entirety. 

I make the BWP comparison for another big reason besides the fact that both directors took a minimalist gore/less graphic approach to depicting fear and horror though. Even more obvious then this was how the primary tale is told from the point of view of a Seattle newspaper reporter desperately trying to make sense of a seemingly outlandish incident much the same way that the crew in Blair Witch sets out to document a legend in Burkittesville, MD they aren't all that certain of and you have an obvious timeline constantly being rolled out in front of you. Rachel's scene in a classroom with her sons concerned teacher was rather well choreographed and provided outstanding foreshadowing as well as providing insight on how she deals with her superiors. 

Overall, The Ring had far more suspense and genuine eeriness then Signs or any of the previous M. Night movies managed to conjure up and I felt Naomi Watts was sensational in her role as Rachel Keller. She was plenty hot in Mulholland Drive, but she steals the majority of the scenes in this one making me want to pack my bags and move to Australia even quicker in search of her and Kylie Minogue. One final comparison I will add is that I felt Damian Dorfman (Aidan Keller in the film) was a much more credible youngster with heightened senses then Haley Joel Osmont managed to portray in the Sixth Sense. M. Night Shyamalan was quick to point out that he felt Haley was the best young actor of his generation after The Sixth Sense, but he just didn't do all that much for me in either that one or AI. Damian has one scene centering around the use of the word "conundrum" which left me shaking in my seat in a great way feeling genuine hair standing on neck emotions. Bravo in watching him walk slowly through a house retracing certain steps in a suit and tie and seeing him tie his own tie all by himself. Loved all of the little continuity details that kept this one on track for the full ride. 

I give this one 3 1/2 stars out of 4 and walked out of the theater a little speechless in going over some of the more graphic scenes. Closeups of a horses infinitely dark eye really were genuinely eery making one wonder if this vision wasn't somehow done to symbolically mask a much larger sinister tale of an alien like possession almost or something much more evil in spirit at hand then your traditional completely freaked out horse. There is just no way in hell that it could have been filmed that way by coincidence alone. One scene on a ferry ride really makes you feel just horrible inside to the same tune that I felt in The Horse Whisperer early in that film. Also without spoiling anything central in this film, I kept noticing that it looked like actual words were spelled out with grass or moss on the tops of Cabin 12 and also on the porch rooftop of a certain house. Another scene featured a rather harrowing trajedy which instantly made me think of a particular scene from Monsters Ball where life is no longer valued. I will withhold all details on this to prevent any major spoilers though. Very clever use in the sun setting and the leaves changing colors/dying. I usually can figure out well in advance how most hollywood movies will end up concluding but this one had me guessing all the way to the end and still managed to surprise me which The Sixth Sense couldn't claim to do for me... Lots to think about after that one. Look for all the circles and rings in this movie. You will find them everywhere. 

Worth the six bucks.


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## Unthinkable (Sep 13, 2002)

One thing that continues to surprise me in reading a few movie reviews for this film today is that several paid movie critics all maintain that there is no blood at all in The Ring which isn't really accurate truth be known. Not really sure how they managed to all miss this somehow. I do agree with the ones suggesting that the violence is fairly minimal considering the run time of the movie though. I was rather psyched to find that this came from the same screenwriter who did Arlington Road.

****If you go to see this movie, STAY TILL THE VERY END!!!! DO NOT LEAVE EARLY!!!!****


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## thomasmaly (Jul 7, 2002)

Thanks for the thourough review.


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## jrjcd (Apr 23, 2002)

next year...ring thru the nose...lol


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## Augie #70 (Apr 24, 2002)

Based on my two oldest teeneagers recomendation My wife and I went yesterday with my youngest teenager to see the Ring. Well, that's a couple of hours of my life that I'll never get back. My son, who disapperaed for 20 minutes at a time apparently was sneeking into see Jackass. Neither my Wife or I felt it was up to the level that we had heard. 

That's the problem when you get people lavishing praise on a movie, often my expectations are unrealistically high and the movie has little chance to live up to its hype.


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## Ken Seeber (Oct 23, 2002)

> _Originally posted by The Unthinkable _
> *I can now see why this film was so well received over in Japan after catching this yesterday at a matinee. *


Keep in mind, this movie has not gone over well in Japan because it hasn't been released there yet.

"The Ring" is based on a hit Japanese movie that was released in 1998. They are two different movies.


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## Unthinkable (Sep 13, 2002)

Yeah I was referring to Ringu there. The inspiration for remaking it.


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