Film Reviews by AGame

For the first half of this film I thought it would be the best of the American Ring movies. I love Ringu and Ringu 2, but I thought the American Ring was a real mess, full of jump scares and weird imagery and lacking the heart of the Japanese original. This new American movie actually explores some cool themes. Is a ring of people rewatching each others copies really so bad? Isn't life a cycle anyway? If you have physical evidence of a soul contacting the living after death, shouldn't that be studied scientifically. Can you make yourself immune to Sadako's power if you take away your sight, considering that she sends her victims visions and relies on them watching tv screens? But in the end a central mystery at the half way mark os a message on the female protagonist's hand.... and if you've seen the trailer they've already told you what the mark says. That message is the final reveal of the film and any further explanation of that message was being saved for future sequels.

Rings is a solid film and it doesn't rely on dumb jump scares like previous instalments. The visions and their connection to the plot feels a bit more consistent than in the other American films. However, in the end this is mainly just a repeat of the plot of the first film. While we are promised something more, the end credits leave us hanging.

At least Sadako 3D tried to do something different. But in the end Ringu and Ringu 2 are the only films worth checking out in this series (though I'm interested in checking out Sadako Vs Kakayo).