Movie Review

The Ring Two

I was quite impressed and entertained by the first Ring. I mean, how often does an actually good horror film come along? So I had somewhat high hopes for The Ring Two (and I like how they spell out the number for this movie). Of course, my hopes were shattered - what else is new?

Following the events of the first film, Rachel (Naomi Watts) and her son Aidan (David Dorfman) move to a coastal town for a new life. After a prologue showing that the haunted videotape still exists, the mother and son attempt to recuperate from the madness of their past. But sure enough, something intrudes: Aidan starts exhibiting sickness symptoms, and it becomes increasingly clear that Samara (the ghost girl from the first film) is involved in the madness.

But madness is something this film does not have enough of. There is in fact a segment in a mental institution, which is a cheap ploy, but the movie still doesn't push any envelopes. It thinks it is creepy, and that's the problem. The first film didn't try desperate gimmicks to create an eerie mood (and a lot of it was psychologically induced), and here the efforts are forced and comparable to an average horror movie. There are a few jumpy moments as expected, but they are expected, which takes the impact away. Hideo Nakata, the original Japanese director of Ringu, directed this picture, and yet the finished product is something that any American hack could have turned out equally well.

Naomi Watts comes off as very motherly, and that is her best quality besides her beauty. She carries the film, but she is given little material to work with. David Dorfman is weird and creepy, but he's also nearly impossible to like; a child actor who could convey more of an emotional range may have been a better choice. There are cameos from Gary Cole and Sissy Spacek (perhaps a nod to Carrie), but their characters do not mean much to the story.

The Ring Two is a sequel that proves why sequels should rarely be made. The Ring is clearly not a franchise; there's only enough material for one movie. Of course, the efforts could have been creative and fresh, and worthy of a sequel, but in today's age that's probably too much to ask. Let's hope they quietly put the series to bed instead of unleashing The Ring Three.

Scott's Grade: C

A	15.1%
B	59.2%
C	24.5%
D	1.2%
F	0.0%