Ju-On - The Grudge [DVD] [2003]

A social worker visits an untidy house to find a confused old woman. She hears noises and, when she investigates, discovers a black cat and a feral boy locked away upstairs. The enigmatic weave of the mystery is then elaborated as we follow the tales of other visitors to the house ... some before the social worker, some after her ... each of whom assists us in unlocking the story of what has happened to the child and what will become of the social worker.

The horror, here, is never defined. Ju-On follows in another Japanese tradition - horror, evil, the inexplicable are portrayed as timeless qualities. Fear is in the unknown, so is horror being unable to understand what is happening? Now you see it, now you don't.

The plot is decidedly disjointed. You are unable to decide, from moment to moment, where the story starts ... or where it will end. We have a feral child who plays a macabre version of peek-a-boo. Now you understand it, now you don't ... until the next scene offers some explanation. And further confusion.

There is no music, no special effects, no dramatic sounds, hardly any action. The story unfolds in slow motion. It's scary in places, it's strange throughout. Some spirit of vengeance haunts the house ... but what has caused it to possess the place, what has disturbed it, what has caused it to remain?

Peek-a-boo, now you see me, now you don't. The haunting image of the feral child, Toshio, keeps appearing, then disappearing. Japanese horror has often been accused to failing to follow a logical (western) plot sequence. Ju-On consciously abandons any logic, attempting to capture the essence of horror - its unpredictability. The story bounces backwards and forwards - you have to constantly check your bearings. Characters appear, then disappear.

Is it scary? Well, more unsettling than scary, largely because of the uncertainty of what might happen next ... or the discovery of what happened before. It is claustrophobic, disjointed, and consciously confusing. And it will not be to everyone's taste. Macabre, disturbing, I still cannot make up my mind whether or not I really enjoyed the experience. Now I see it ... .

A social worker visits an untidy house to find a confused old woman. She hears noises and, when she investigates, discovers a black cat and a feral boy locked away upstairs. The enigmatic weave of the mystery is then elaborated as we follow the tales of other visitors to the house ... some before the social worker, some after her ... each of whom assists us in unlocking the story of what has happened to the child and what will become of the social worker.

The horror, here, is never defined. Ju-On follows in another Japanese tradition - horror, evil, the inexplicable are portrayed as timeless qualities. Fear is in the unknown, so is horror being unable to understand what is happening? Now you see it, now you don't.

The plot is decidedly disjointed. You are unable to decide, from moment to moment, where the story starts ... or where it will end. We have a feral child who plays a macabre version of peek-a-boo. Now you understand it, now you don't ... until the next scene offers some explanation. And further confusion.

There is no music, no special effects, no dramatic sounds, hardly any action. The story unfolds in slow motion. It's scary in places, it's strange throughout. Some spirit of vengeance haunts the house ... but what has caused it to possess the place, what has disturbed it, what has caused it to remain?

Peek-a-boo, now you see me, now you don't. The haunting image of the feral child, Toshio, keeps appearing, then disappearing. Japanese horror has often been accused to failing to follow a logical (western) plot sequence. Ju-On consciously abandons any logic, attempting to capture the essence of horror - its unpredictability. The story bounces backwards and forwards - you have to constantly check your bearings. Characters appear, then disappear.

Is it scary? Well, more unsettling than scary, largely because of the uncertainty of what might happen next ... or the discovery of what happened before. It is claustrophobic, disjointed, and consciously confusing. And it will not be to everyone's taste. Macabre, disturbing, I still cannot make up my mind whether or not I really enjoyed the experience. Now I see it ... .