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Today, I'm going to review the 2002 Japanese horror film called, Ju-On: The Grudge.
Now keep in mind
I should warn you that this review will contain minor spoilers,
but I do believe that it's necessary because the plot is rather complicated,
and you might find it hard to understand.
So, I think that this review might help put things in perspective for you
The first thing that I should mention is the way the movie is filmed.
The chapters aren't put in chronological order. It's kind of like Pulp Fiction,
like where you'll see the second chapter before the first chapter, or the fourth chapter before the third and so on and so fourth.
It's a unique style, and I've only seen it used in these movies.
The second thing I should talk about is the mythology of the ghost's.
The story is basically about a house that's haunted by ghosts,
primarily a woman, and her son. The woman's name is Kayako, and her sons name is Toshio.
How they came to be ghost's is because Kayako's husband Takeo murdered them,
because he believed that Kayako was cheating on him,
and he believed that Toshio wasn't his real son.
You never know if there's any truth to that.
They never actually establish if she was cheating on him, or if he was just insane.
It's all left a mystery.
The way he kills her is actually pretty horrifying,
he pretty much beats her to a pulp, breaks her neck and he either stabs her,
or cuts her open with a box cutter
(well, at least I think it's a box cutter if I remember correctly)
And then he stacks her up in the attic.
He kills Toshio by drowning him in the bathtub.
And he also kills Toshio's cat.
Keep in mind, none of this is actually shown in the movie,
but it's all implied later on.
And there's a commentary where the director talks about how Takeo murders his family.
Of course Takeo also dies, but they never say how.
They mention that a neighbor found his corpse laying in the middle of the road or something.
So I guess the implication is that Kayako killed him when she became an immortal spirit.
So, from there, the house ends up haunted by these ghost's
If you had already seen this film, then you're already familiar with the ghost's
People are always terrified of Toshio. He's all, pale and creepy looking,
and he meows like a cat.
Because when he and the cat died, both their spirits combined which is pretty cool.
There are also times where he'll appear in his original, form I guess to be more deceiving.
And then there's Kayako, who is probably one of the most terrifying, awesome horror movie villains ever.
Whenever she appears, she tends to be white and blue like Toshio,
except I think she's a lot scarier.
She mostly crawls on the floor with this creepy zombie like movement,
there are other times in the movie where she'll appear as a shadow
and every time she appears, she makes this croaking sound.
And the reason why is because Takeo crushed her neck so she couldn't speak
and so she can only make that noise.
She seems to be the main ghost of the film, she's a true Japanese onyro.
To me, the scene at the end where she crawls down the stairs
is one of the most amazing scenes in horror history.
I think the point to this movie is that, whoever enters the house becomes part of a curse.
At the beginning of the movie, the opening title says,
"Ju-On: The curse of one who dies in the grip of powerful rage.
It gathers and takes effect in the places that person was alive
Those who encounter it die, and a new curse is born."
I'll admit, when I first saw Ju-On I hated it,
I thought it was a huge disappointment,
I didn't think it made any chronological sense, and I couldn't understand what was going on.
But about a year later, I watched it again, and I really focused on what was going on,
and after watching it a second time,
I have to say, the movie is a masterpiece.
I personally think it's one of the best horror films ever made.
Normally, I hate movies about ghost's and haunted houses, but in this case
I consider this a haunted house ghost story done right.
It's not the kind of movie that I'd recommend to everyone though.
If you're the kind of person that just wants blood gore, and jumpscares, and to have everything spelled out for you,
then this is not the movie for you.
Ju-On is a movie that relies on suspense and atmosphere,
It's a true thinkers movie. It doesn't spell everything out to you.
The director manages to make certain scenes horrifying without using any blood or gore,
instead it's all left to the imagination
t's an old movie trick, which I admire the director for using.
Once you see the movie, I think you'll know what I'm talking about.
They are certain scenes in the movie where nothing happens,
but the tension builds up, letting you know that something bad is going to happen.
It's almost like you're being put in the characters shoes and feel the presence of an evil force.
The soundtrack is also really good, it sets the mood perfectly for each scene
The movie was written, and directed by Takashi Shimizu,
and he does a fantastic job. He definitely knows how to come up with a good story line.
And he did great job at directing the movie.
I should also give some recognition to the chick that plays Kayako,
her name is Takako Fuji, she's the one of the main reasons the movie is so scary.
She makes a perfect ghost.
In 2004 they did an American remake of Ju-On called, The Grudge.
I'm sure you've heard of it, it was extremely popular when it came out,
and surprisingly enough, it's done by the same director, Takashi Shimizu.
A lot of people like to compare the two movies,
but in my opinion there's no comparison
I mean, The Grudge was ok, but Ju- On is by far the better film.
However I think that The Grudge helps put things in perspective more,
and they don't make it as hard to understand, so you might like The Grudge more.
Not to mention, if they hadn't made The Grudge,
then Ju-On probably wouldn't have gotten as much recognition.