Director: Takashi Shimizu
Writer: Takashi Shimizu (Screenplay)
Starring: Noriko Sakai, Chiharu Niiyama, Kei Horie, Yui Ichikawa, Ayumu Saito, Emi Yamamoto
Plot: As their curse spreads on all around, the ghosts find their chance to live once again through the pregnancy of a cursed woman.
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Complicated but Terrifying
Story: Ju-On: The Grudge 2 starts as we meet Kyoko (Sakai) a pregnant aspiring actress with her fiancé Masashi (Saito) who after hitting a cat find themselves haunted by a ghost boy who crashes their car and is drawn towards Kyoko’s baby. With Kyoko dealing with the ghost haunting her every day, we move onto to meet a friend of Kyoko’s Tomoka (Niiyama) who has been experience her own ghostly events in her apartment. Tomoka calls in ghost hunter Noritaka (Horie) to help example the unusual knocking at the same time every night.
Continuing the hauntings around the set of the horror production Megumi (Yamamoto) the star of the movie has her own experience with the ghostly presence but how are they all connected?
Thoughts on Ju-On: The Grudge 2
Story – When it comes to horror the last thing you want to do is put the pieces back together because thinking in the last thing you want to do. This film does make you think when you put together the events and unlike the first one the story is bigger, once you have figured out the story you will enjoy this horror story that continues the curse idea so well.
Horror – When it comes to horror you need to never look further than the Asian horror boom of the early 2000s and this is just one of those films that bought the ghost horror back to life in real terror for the audience.
Characters/Performance – Each character in the film has a connection to another even though we only follow one character at a time and not always in order of events. The characters all react differently to the ghostly visits which will all come back to show the horror. The performances are all good as you believe all the fear the characters are experiencing through the film.
Settings – Each setting is used to become the final piece to the jigsaw that this film has become now, the settings are used to bring us the horror because they come from such surprising locations too.
Special Effects – When you look at the effects being used in this film you will find they have the ability to strike pure terror into the viewing which is something many horror never understand but the Asian ghost horrors capture so easily.
Final Thoughts – You like your Asian horrors then watch this one, the first introduces the Grudge this one builds on it to the next level.
Overall: Welcome addition to the Asian horror genre that will scare you from start to finish.
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