Ring 2 ---- makes sense why it doesn't make sense

Title:
The Ring 2 (B-)
PH Release Date:
April 13, 2005
Actors:
Naomi Watts, David Dorfman, Simon Baker, Elizabeth Perkins, Sissy Spacek, Emily Van Camp, Kelly Stables
Director:
Hideo Nakata
Based on the film:
“Ringu”
Screenplay:
Ehren Kruger
Music / Cinematography:
Hans Zimmer / Gabriel Beristain
Producer:
Michael Macari Jr. et al.
Studio:
DreamWorks Pictures



“fear comes full circle my ass!!!”

The one that started this Jap spooky craze is back for its preordained sequel. This time, DreamWorks hired the same man who brought these movies into life. Hideo Nakata, director of the original The Ring. Will his presence result to a mind-blowing sequel? Or will it be as dumb and dull as the original Ring 2???

It’s hard to say. I saw the first The Ring two and half years ago and I can’t compare it to the original one, cuz the stupid me was able to see Ring 2 and Ring 0 but not the its predecessor. But I did like the movie. The idea of being slaughtered 7-days after watching a shampoo video (the hait combing thing) is definitely better than any slasher movies in existence. However, the script wasn’t really able to establish the movie as sensible. It’s a never ending “How can that be???” and “How come???” I did like Gore Verbinski’s (Pirates of the Carribean, The Mexican) keen visual direction but man, he’s not much of a storyteller. And Hideo Nakata was not that different.



Picking up six months after Rachel Keller (Watts) managed to have a well scene with Samara (Stables), she and son Aidan (Dorfman) tries to start anew. They relocate to Oregon, it may not have the world's best coffee (they’re form Seattle remember?) but definitely away from their dreadful past--- or so they thought. Just a few days after moving in, a mysterious death occurred involving two teenagers and a videotape. Who else can it possibly be??? She then tries to find out if the girl in desperate need of an ambush makeover is really back, only to realize that she’s not making any visits, she’s planning to stay for good (without reservations--- that’s awful).

The movie’s script is a bottomless well of plot holes, that even Samara, with her flexible joints and sticky hands won’t be able to get out of. Don’t you just love it when she tries to crawl out of the well??? Anyways, it was like a work of an amateur, though it actually makes more sense than the first one, she wasn’t able to completely cover the subplots, that oh right, she made herself! She writes about killing somebody and not telling us how it ends up and adds up to the story??? Honey, you’re not a God, you can’t just kill people and throw them on the street, have some decency and burn them.




And man, this girl have some man issues, Naomi’s characters always ends up with a dead boyfriend, or in this one just a potential boyfriend, imagine that! So much for her happy ending ei? And speaking of boyfriend, there was once scene that I found really, really terribly odd, the dinner scene where Rachel tries to talk her son into calling her mommy. The dialogue was good, but man, it felt like Naomi was flirting with his son. That was really funny, and Micheal Jackson was like, “How come she gets to do that and I can’t???”

I thought the characterization was a bit inconsistent, disregarding the fact that Aidan is actually switching characters. And oh, just in case you didn’t notice, Samara’s real mother (yup, she’s adopted) was played by Sissy Spacek. Yup, that’s her in the white dress and the ambush makeover bound hair (too much promotion here). For the first time, we’re seeing the real Sissy Spacek again. Back on her Carrie roots, she wasn’t causing any fire this time though.

I say there was a bit of improvement visually, the eerie feeling was totally there when they want it to be and they’re still able to move me to the edge of my seat. I guess it was a good move in the part of the producers to hire a new director cuz if Gore was given the same script, oh, we’re up for some treat, another The Mexican ei??? Hideo Nakata wasn’t that bad, but not so good either.



Naomi Watts is such a doll. 9 out of 10 of her shots, I have to convince myself that I’m not seeing Nicole Kidman. Probably because they’re both Aussie and they’re really, really good friends that they start to look so much alike. I mean, seriously, they look so identical. She did a wonderful job, well, she’s kinda a second-rate Nicole in a way, picking up roles which Nicole so humbly throws around, but I think she’s a really fine actress. If Nicole is inexistent, she’ll probably do better. I wonder how they end up so close when almost everyone thinks of them as rivals???

David Dorfman is really a creepy kid. If this kid lives next door, I’d probably order my sister not to play with him. He talks old, he acts old and he looks old. He’s not cute at all. But he was very good, I thought the role was right for him. Some camera conscious shots but it was fine. The rest of the cast were really supporting cast, as in like legs of the chair that you can still sit on even if they’re gone (what an analogy). And oh, Kelly Stables deserves an Oscar for her look. I wonder how she looks like on a daily basis. Got no time to look.



As far as I am concerned, this movie didn’t fail to scare me at least once, but I don’t think it was enough for me to really like it. There’s just more time that it makes no sense than it actually makes sense. Too much preparation may have killed this movie, not taking yourself so seriously sometimes is really essential. I mean c’mon it’s a fictional horror flick, cut the audience some slack. It did come in full circle, no, not fear, but bewilderment.

Grading Sheet:
Story – 14%
Screenplay – 13%
Direction / Execution – 14%
Acting – 16%
Technical Aspect – 16%
Total: 73% = B-