I got off work, and caught the evening show of it.

I buy a bottle of water, Raisinets, and sour gummy worms.

GO SEE THIS MOVIE.

A girl and her friend are talking about a video that kills you if you watch it,

Later, one watches said video. Bam, dead in seven days.


It sounded like just another urban legend-a videotape filled with nightmarish images, leading to a phone call foretelling the viewer's death in exactly seven days. As a newspaper reporter, Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) was naturally skeptical of the story, until four teenagers all met with mysterious deaths exactly one week after watching just such a tape. Allowing her investigative curiosity to get the better of her, Rachel tracks down the video·and watches it. Now, she must enlist the aid of her friend Noah (Martin Henderson) to save her life and the life of her son (David Dorfman). Together, they have just seven days to unravel the mystery of "The Ring."

A remake of one of Japan's biggest box office hits ever, "The Ring" was directed by Gore Verbinski ("The Mexican," "Mouse Hunt"), and produced by Walter F. Parkes ("Gladiator," "Men in Black 2") and Laurie MacDonald ("Gladiator," "Men in Black 2") from a screenplay by Ehren Kruger. The suspense thriller stars award-winning actress Naomi Watts ("Mulholland Drive") and Martin Henderson ("Windtalkers"), and also stars young actor David Dorfman (upcoming "A Wrinkle in Time") and Emmy winner Brian Cox ("Nuremberg," "The Bourne Identity"). The main cast also includes Richard Lineback, Daveigh Chase, Lindsay Frost, Pauley Perrette, Amber Tamblyn and Rachael Bella, with a cameo appearance by Jane Alexander.

The film is executive produced by Mike Macari, Roy Lee and Michele Weisler, with Neal Edelstein and J.C. Spink serving as co-executive producers. "The Ring" is based on the novel The Ring by Koji Suzuki and on the motion picture "The Ring" by The Ring/The Spiral Production Group.

(synopsis taken from The Ring Official Site)


Very creepy, extremely well-done.

I'm one of those people you can't scare, and it made me jump in SEVERAL places!

Seems like it ends about an hour before it does...

But the ending doesn't disappoint. It's not a corny, cliched horror movie end.

Just saw it again. Still jumped.

Go see it, now! Go! Quit reading this!

I have to disagree. It is scary, but for the most part, it's on a "BOO! GOTCHA!" level that always irritates me. The whole concept though is neat and unsettling, but the nitpicker in me has a lot of stuff with this film:

1. Why does the girl in the teaser know about the tape? At this point, it shouldn't have killed anybody yet...or has it? And if it has, why hasn't anybody else heard about it?

2. What exactly is up with Rachel's son, besides doing a bad Haley Joel Osment impression? Why does he know Samarra is evil, but not tell Rachel until it is too late?

3. What in the bloody **** difference does it make if Samarra is out of the well or not? Is she going to be twice as evil or something?

4. On a really banal level, what exactly are the "rules of the tape?" If you make a copy, is that all? Must you show it to someone? If you watch the COPY, will you die? And to me, it's a heck of a stretch that Rachel really determines this; after all, there are a whole bunch of things she did that Noah didn't do...

5. Wouldn't SOMEONE else be investigating this?

I'm sorry if I sound crass, but I think there's a thin line between "scary and mysterious" and "vague and irritating." This movie crossed the line.

Sorry to ask, but could somebody post a forum for the original Japanese Ring Movies (I.E Ring 0 (The Prequel), Ring 1 & Ring 2), somewhere on this board. Reason, I'm a British Movie buff, & would like some disscussions over the "Ring Cycle".
To answer some of Mike C 's points, based on the Japanese version.
Point 3 could be answered as "Which Sakura/Samarra are you talking about ?". I can't expand on this answer, as it forms a major part of the plot of Ring 0 !
Point 4, "The Rules of the Tape" are simple. if you watch the "Tape", if you can get someone else to watch it after you within 7 days, you live, as effectively, you've passed the "Curse" onto someone else, Otherwise... Making a copy of the "Tape" may or may not help you, as it's not a condition of breaking the "curse", it's just if someone watches the copy within the time period, then it "counts" as passing the "Curse".

The Region 1 DVD of Ring's out on March 4th !
I'll have to get a copy to "Compare & Contrast" with the original Japanese version !

From what I understand, I think it's the making a copy and giving it to someone (or at least making it available to others) is the important part...

There's a subplot they cut about a serial killer or something who was going to approach Rachel at the beginning of the movie and ask her to help clear him, and she blows him off (knowing he's guilty). And in this subplot, she was supposed to give him the copy at the end. There is a scene they did film (but didn't use) where she goes into a video store and leaves the tape copy there.

An interesting easter egg for anyone with the Region 1 DVD... on the main menu, click the 'Right' arrow on your DVD remote, and 'Down' twice. This should make the cursor disappear. Then click 'Enter', and enjoy yourself...

For those who don't want to wait to try it out, here's what happens when you do it, in white for those who want to be surprised.

Basically, you get to watch the actual video 'made' by Samara. However, the interesting note is that while the video's running, the DVD is designed to have your player stop accepting input from the remote (so the only way to stop the video is to turn off the TV or physically turn off the DVD player in some fashion). After the final image on the video and it goes to static, the sound of a phone ringing can be heard and then you get control back.

It's the same idea as Tartan put on their
Region 0 Disc of Ring 2 ! (They even put a disclaimer warning, about what might happen if you watched it !) The Tartan Region 0 Ring DVD had it as a selectable item on the menu !

Spoilers!!!!!!!
Don't read if you want to be suprised!!!


I BEG somebody to try to explain to me how Samara killed Katie in the begining. I was left thinking that she did that whole crawl out of the TV trick and did her in, like she does with Noah later on ((WAY cool part by the way)). Is there any other possible way she could have done it? We don't see her kill anyone else.
We know she can do ghosty things because we see those nails move out and such. So it's not a streach to beleive she caused the natural-looking deaths of the other people Kate was with. But Katie's death involved the TV. WHat happened?

The problem of course, is that Aidin says "you shouldn't have let her out" right before Samara kills Noah. As if the Down-in-the-well scene was the direct cause of Samara emerging from the TV. OK, so how did Katie die again? Shouldn't have Samara have been still be trapped? Help!!

And who was the girl Rachel sees leaving Noah's building after his death? Samara (as she would have looked like now)? NOah's girlfreind? here's a thought .... BOTH??

THis movie needs some astrisks...

Unfortunately, the well sequence comes from
the Japanese prequel Ring 0, (Reason, it's the place of internment of "Saddako 2"), and the prequel to the U.S version will have to explain it, in order to sort these nits out.
A major subplot of the Japanese Ring Trilogy, is the story of Saddako's/Samara's father, who was researching/experimenting with psychic phenomnina. By the way, any magnetic media, according to Ring 0, can be influenced by Saddako/Samara, not just video tape....

It seems that Saddako/Samarra's influence on magnetic media, seem to reach to this board's server's backup tape drives, judging by the state of my last comment.....?!

This one just reinforced why I hate most horror movies. (I should note that I detested The Shining when I first saw it, but have since come to highly appreciated it.) I heard about how scary this one was, but to me, disturbing <> scary. There were some unsettling images which unfortunately keep coming back. I just hate having a bunch of stuff set up and SO many unanswered questions at the end. I will grant that it wasn't boring, and had some stylishly shot scenes.

There was a kinda neat subliminal on the DVD. Just after the horse gets plowed under the ferry boat's propellers, the soundtrack rises to a loud shriek and there's a jump cut to the next scene. If you freeze frame right there, there is a single frame of the Ring image inbetween the scenes. I don't know if there were any others.


So is this a whole series in Japanese? I'd be interested in seeing the original version, one of which I saw in the video store.

I have to admit it is a move that stays with you (at least for a week!!) I was a little freaked out last night when I realized it had been exactly a week since I'd seen the video. After watching fireworks, I happened to be walking past a cemetery on a boulevard that had no lights, and only a slim crescent moon to light the way. There was a group of people about 50 yards ahead of me that was walking a little slowly, and I didn't feel like catching up to them, so I crossed the street to the other side which went along a golf course.

After a while I noticed I didn't hear them laughing or talking anymore, and realized they must have turned into the cemetery! The place is closed at that time of night. I couldn't fathom them parking there as the golf course parking lot was right across the street, and I'm sure they didn't turn around and go the other way.

That got me thinking about the movie. The premise of it was that exactly a week after seeing a certain video, you die, and just before that happens, you see The Ring. A few minutes later (now walking a little faster!) I thought of the timing of it, and heard a "Ring! Ring!". I turned and saw a circle of light approaching. OK, heart attack time. Turned out it was a biker also returning from the firework viewing area, and ringing her little bell to signal she was coming up behind.

Damm, I hate horror movies!

Re;Influx's last comment
Yes, there is a Ring series in Japan
Ring 1 was the first to be released in Japan, followed by Ring 2.
Ring 3, However, "Flopped" in Japan,& as a result has not been released in the U.K By Tartan Video (It was a Science Fiction/Horror film).
The Last Ring movie to be released, was Ring 0, set in the 1960's, & was the prequel to the whole series, & dealt with Sadakko's/Samara's origin & "Death" !
Tartan Video do the DVD's in the U.K as Region 0 Pal discs, so IF you have a Multi-region DVD player or can make your computer's DVD Rom drive Multi-region, start enquiring on the Net

There is also a Japanese TV series based on the first movie

It appears that "Ring 2" is going to be filmed, but will it follow the Japanese "Ring 2" plot, use the plot of "The Spiral" (The Other Ring 2), or start a plot unconnected to either ?
Yours,Confused

I am a major "Ring" fanatic, and however many times I watch it, it still gives me the creeps.
A few problems though. Why, after copying the tape, does Rachel still experience the symptoms of a victim? Shouldn't she be safe now?
Also, why not just make a copy of the tape and then burn them both? That way you'd rid the world of a great evil at no cost to yourself. Or would Samara become really really angry with that?
How did the first victim, the cousin, end up in the closet? Did Samara (am I spelling this right?) put her there after she killed her for dramatic effect? Or did she crawl in their and Samara came after her? If so, it's nice that Samara would close the door after murdering her; she probably did it for dramatic effect.
Where does the water go? When the cousin opens her bedroom door, there's a puddle of water on the floor. But nobody mentions that again. Did Samara mop it up after she was finished? Or did the cops just assume that puddles of water in a girl's bedroom was normal?
All in all, a terrifying movie and I can't WAIT for Ring 2!

Also, why not just make a copy of the tape and then burn them both? That way you'd rid the world of a great evil at no cost to yourself

It's not just copying the tape, but copying the tape and showing it to someone else, that saves you. The only way to save yourself is to sacrifice another.

Tartan Video do the DVD's in the U.K as Region 0 Pal discs, so IF you have a Multi-region DVD player or can make your computer's DVD Rom drive Multi-region, start enquiring on the Net

If they are R0, then you don't need a multi-region DVD player, as R0 is universal. However, PAL is still an issue if you live in a NTSC area.

Hey, I just watched the movie AGAIN last weekend with my boyfriend (a new one, not the stalker guy- wish me luck). Anyway, he noticed that just before Samara came out of the television to kill Noah, he picks up his coffee mug. What's left on the paper? A ring, of course, from the mug.
Well, they do say that the ring is the last thing you see before you die...

Just saw this movie on tv (edited for content).
The video showed the mom's suicide. But that didn't happen until after Sam was in the well.

If, there were 3 or 4 youth who all saw the tape together, then only 1 would die. The viewing of it was passed on.

Also, I thought that watching the tape from the mental hospital was what saved a person.

Here is the sequence of events as I understand them:
Sam can cause images to appear & also cause people & animals to go crazy.
Parents sent Sam to mental hospital.
Later, mom has to kill the child she always wanted.
Mom dies.
A cabin is built over the well.
Sam records images onto a tape in the cabin.

"If, there were 3 or 4 youth who all saw the tape together, then only 1 would die. The viewing of it was passed on."
No, because they did not give it to each other to watch. They watched it together, so they all became victims of the curse. Also, none of them made a copy.

"Also, I thought that watching the tape from the mental hospital was what saved a person."

Why do you think that?

"I thought that watching the tape from the mental hospital was what saved a person."

Rachel wondered what she did differently in order to survive. Also, she remembered that Sam wanted to be heard. Rachel did least 3 things differently: 1. copied the tape. 2. got someone to watch it after her (Sam was heard by someone else). 3. watched the tape from the mental hospital (the real Sam was heard by her).

To save her son, she showed him how to copy the tape. It was apparent that she would get someone else to watch it. However, to be certain her son was saved, she should show him the other tape.

Wouldn't it be ironic if she spread the curse but didn't have to?
I wonder if she will put instructions on the tape as to how to survive it.

Originally the movie had a subplot about a child killer who was freed on a legal technicality asking her to help clear his name through her reporting. She refuses because she is sure he is guilty, the final shot of the movie was going to be her giving the tape to him. Another ending was going to be her and her son putting the tape in a video store.

I believe those alternate/deleted scenes are included as bonuses on the DVD if anyone was interested in seeing them.