The Ring - out now
An unmarked video tape that kills you seven days after you’ve watched it is the focus for this psychological thriller, based on the Japanese horror film of the same name. More eerie than grotesque, The Ring is bound to send more than a few Hallowe’en shivers down your spine this Friday.
Naomi Watts plays Rachel Keller, a Seattle-based newspaper reporter who is asked to investigate the sudden and mysterious death of her niece. Rachel discovers that three other teenagers also died that day, and that all four had watched a mysterious, grainy video exactly a week earlier. But once she manages to track down the offending VHS the budding journo can’t help but take a peek, and begins to fear that her curiosity could get the better of her. Determined not to be fooled by an urban legend, Rachel enlists the help of her reluctant ex-boyfriend Noah (Martin Henderson) and intuitive son Aiden (David Dorfman) to get to the bottom of the mystery. But one death threat later and Rachel is fighting to save her own life and those of her family. The clock is ticking…
Highly stylised and visually creative, the film’s success lies first and foremost in the tape itself, with its layering of creepy and gruesome imagery – including a ghostly woman, a severed finger and the titular ring. Director Gore Verbinski does the shock treatment brilliantly, assuaging your fears until just the right moment, and then going in for the kill. As more and more people get their hands on the unmarked tape and discover they have just a few days to live, the atmosphere becomes increasingly claustrophobic, culminating in feelings of helplessness and despair.
Watts is excellent in her leading role as a sceptic on whom the truth of the video tape’s deathly power slowly dawns, although we see little character development throughout. Henderson makes an admirable devil’s advocate, consistently challenging Rachel’s suppositions.
As the evidence mounts, the film begins to lag. The denouement is given in tedious detail, each explanation accompanied by flashback after flashback which makes the movie feel overlong even though it runs for less than two hours.
The Ring shies away from blood and violence, instead presenting a fascinating mind game which transforms the unknown into something monstrous. You may not be screaming at the telly or hiding behind a cushion but this creepy thriller will stay lodged in your subconscious for hours after the film’s close.
