One of the few horror films that genuinely creeps me out. A lot of it has to do with the music and the atmosphere. Also, the way Rachel slowly researches Samara and her past is done in such an unsettling way
So glad I found this channel. FINALLY....an intelligent movie reviewer who gets it ! ! Someone who understands and knows how to break down my kind of cinema. Someone who actually loves "weird" and "trippy" movies. Thank you 🙏
That’s a really interesting way to look at this film. I am so glad there is this platform for people to talk about their different perceptions on art. Thanks for the video!
Though the film is a bit older now, it's still scary. The imagery in certain scenes is almost trying to bury itself in your psyche. Naomi's performance alone makes the movie that much more terrifying. Nice analysis..
For some reason when this film came out I decided to watch it on mushrooms. I damn near shit my pants when she came crawling through the television set. LMAO
What I truly love about this movie is that it's essentially a very VERY terrifying but also confusing opening sequence, and spending the next hour and half trying to figure out what the hell that was, while still at the end leaving a few questions unanswered or ambiguous making it even more terrifying.
seeing the ring in the theater with a packed audience was amazing. im so glad i have that memory. people freaked out at the end when we realized it wasnt over. have you seen the original japanese 'dark water'? same director as ringu. i consider it the ring's companion piece.
Check out the original Japanese "Ringu" (1998). The American is just meh, but the Japanese version creeped the f out of me. Build-up, raw emotions, music - you'll like it. :) Btw, I've been binging your content for the last couple of days. Stay awesome. :)
The main strength of the Ring was good use of the “keep your monster hidden” rule. As viewers we are presented with a series of Rorschach tests starting with the first victim, where we are left to imagine how she died and how her corpse came to be in its presented state. The protagonist herself falls into the trap by this, as a woman and as a mother interpreting the bread crumbs and filling in the gaps with her natural urge to act protectively towards children.
One thing I hadn’t noticed one first viewing is that when her son watches the tape you can see Samara coming out of the well for a second before it stops
I loved the comparison with Un chien andalou, i've never tought about that, but you are absolutely right!!. The Ring cursed tape is almost an experimental film within the movie.
@@deepfocuslens In Ringu Sadako Yamamura's Father is An unnamed Japanese Sea Demon and They tried to put that in The Ring 2 which didn't work very well in The Ring 2
Funny that after revisiting this remake one or two years ago (and remembering how much I loved it when it came out), I thought it wasn't much more than a flashy, Hollywood take on the original. I don't find the original movie very scary at all, but I find it much more emotionally resonant, whereas this remake kind of reverses the proportion of style and substance. This analysis is an amazing reading of the film and a great example of why we need to look beyond authorial intentions, because I find Maggie put much more thought behind it than the creators themselves, and sure enough it is all there - the question is whether it was supposed to :)
This was one of the first horror films I ever watched. I've always liked things that are mildly scary, but didn't used to think I could handle horror and thought that all horror was in bad taste. But then I wanted to learn the art of scaring and figured that I couldn't do that unless I subjected myself to scary things. So I watched one of the only horror films that ever remotely intrigued me which was the Ring. And I loved it.
Something interesting I learned about this film: Originally, the film opened and closed with scenes featuring Chris Cooper as a child killer. At the start, Rachel would be interviewing him for a story, expressing disdain for him, and at the end, she would show him the tape, dooming him to die. Apparently the "subplot" was cut because Cooper's profile had risen significantly, making him likely the most well known actor in the film, and test audiences were disappointed that he was in the film so minimally. Based on the description, I think the film is much stronger without that bookend; introducing a child killer and immediately forgetting about him doesn't really do much for the story, and actually kind of undermines the rest of the film (does this tape have something to do with that CHILD MURDERER we saw at the start? Why should we care about 4 teenagers dying when a CHILD MURDERER is in this movie?). Plus, the uncertainty in the ending is way more effective for a horror film.
You should watch the mothman prophecies that movie is spooky. It's a very underrated movie But it is very spooky. This other one that would recommend this kind of a thriller horror in the way. It's called Eye See You Its original title though is called D-tox Sylvester Stallone's is in it. It's not very well known But I think it's very underrated as well.
I liked it alot when it came out and have watched it a few times since then, I think I kinda disregarded it for awhile since it was so popular and marketed as big as every other mainstream horror movie at the time, also The Grudge being remade in the US and the Japanese horror influence was huge then, but I definitely have a deeper appreciation and understanding of The Ring now. I don't think I was aware that David Lynch was offered the chance and that would have been really interesting and now as I think of it there are kind of some eerie similarities to Lynch's Inland Empire, at least visually and maybe in tone at times, though Inland Empire is so abstract and much more involved or complex, really no comparison or connection of course but little images and nuanced details that come to mind could possibly be shared by each. I do want to watch The Ring again soon & I do remember that my old DVD has an extra feature including Samara's video tape that can be viewed . . . if one dares to. Lol
I don't disagree, but I'd have said it the other way around: that films draw on the grammar, syntax, vocabulary, and color pallet of dreams as a preexisting shorthand, and the affinity is particularly clear in The Ring. Naomi never gives a bad performance, and is always watchable; I think because there's someone home behind the eyes. When you first mentioned the film within a film I was waiting for the Andalusian Dog reference. I used to watch films in a sort of two-track mode: naively AND analytically. For me this created cognitive dissonance, so I now watch a new film twice: once each way. I've come to prefer it.
I just rewatched this film and I think I detected a new subtext/theme about parenthood and fatherlessness. I think that Noah dies at the end as a sort of punishment for not accepting the responsibilities of fatherhood and the pain he visited on Rachel and Aiden by rejecting them/not trying to be with them. Aiden is wandering around like a ghost himself, in part because of the lack of attention he received from his careerist mother and his absentee father. So his connection to Samara is sort of a bond of abandonment and disappointment (though obviously Samara is a different kind of elemental evil; the rotten child).
Insightful review as always! The original is revered and rightly so but this is one of the better remakes. On a related note...if you have ringing in your ear... do you have an ear-ring?
This movie creeped me out when I first heard of it, but I guess I got over it before I actually watched it, so it didn't scare me. I just thought it was a good mystery film which was also pretty dark.
i should rewatch this movie, i watched it when i was 14 and i was just trying so hard not to be scared so i found it kind of boring i'm sure i'll appreciate it more now. Also you should review V/H/S if you haven't already.
This movie scared the daylights out of me, but i saw it when it first came out and had no idea what it was (just looking for a movie to see on a bored evening).
Just rewatched this movie yesterday. The Grudge the day before, still like both movies as much as when they first came out. Nostalgic movies for sure, remember seeing them and how scared they both had me. *Have yoy reviewed The Grudge 2004 already?
@deepfocuslens Hey Maggie, when you watched this at 12, were you already a film junkie, getting into the analysis thing or thinking about film as an art, or did that come later?
I was always curious for sure, and was always a film junkie. But I didn't start really analyze them in this type of fashion until maybe 17-18 years old.
@@deepfocuslens Ok. Wow, so you basically started your channel as soon as you got the analysis bug. That's so awesome. Honestly your output puts Siskel and Ebert to shame. I remember watching Stardust Memories as a kid and falling in love with movies after that.
@@deepfocuslens The Changeling from 1980 A Haunted House Movie starring George C. Scott Trish Van Devere and Melvin Douglas also has A Well with A Body in it
@@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017 It's A Great Scary Movie but just like Ringu did it's supposed to getting A modern Remake I think that could be A really big mistake trying to remake it
In the time of teen pop “horror” movies.. like , I know , what you did last summer , and such.. this , one stood out.. I know , it’s a remake .. great movie.. got , it right.. ! On social media.. also, VHS tapes were a made in Asia.. a huge .. thing.. there... from where the original came from...so, social media + current social media... well, versed review
0:40 I find it so ironic he rejected this film. Because he created "The Glass Box" in Twin Peaks the Return. Which has a woman leave the box and kill the people watching it. Sound familiar? Guess we did get our David Lynch version of The Ring! Which was was as scary if not scarier than the Ring!
So if you were to sit down an interpret a YTP like "Batman Can't Stop Thinking About Sex" ..... ??? In all seriousness though, this may have been my second or third horror film (maybe even the first) in the true sense as a viewer. That brings back many pre-adolescent memories, much of which can be considered scarier than "The Ring". It did have the drained color palate on the tape: such an atmosphere just by means of lack of color. It just built to a short stretch of shock. And, uhhh, let me put it this way. Family members have made fun of me for being terrified of Rankin/Bass's stop-motion "Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer", but in my humble opinion no live-action horror can hold a candle to creepy deer puppets that move in arthritic jolts and barely blink.
Have you seen Ringu? It covers pretty much the same ideas but in a way that I find to be more mature/interesting, and I also find it to be a lot more affective as a horror film.
The original Japanese version didn't have that dark green look to it. It's pretty much the same except it's more subtle with the cinematography and writing. Also, the girl's face at the end is more hidden behind her hair and the close up only shows a white eye with no pupil. Definitely the superior version.
The story doesn't do much for me as it is a "one-trick" premise where you just wait for the surprise to happen. A better film also involving digging into a well to find secrets would be the 1980 thriller The Changeling, starring George C. Scott. On the plus side, The Ring is a good film for parents to show their kids in order to warn them not to watch too much TV at night.
Thanks for saying 'the first decade of the 2000s' instead of 2000s. The aughts as they should have been called, if aught didn't have the must of the past on it. But when people say 2000s for the aughts they are actually saying the name of the whole century, or is it millennium? So for most people they don't know what to call the aughts: the noughties, the thousands, the zeros, even the o's. Even the 10's has been confusing. Back in the 20th Century the phrase for the second decade was always the teens. But now people say the much clunkier 'tens'. Evidently people have forgotten that teen means ten. Coolness is ends up being stupid. Fortunately we living in the 20's now. And there isn't a doubt about where we are... at all.
My two cents, but I think you could leave out general information/descriptive information to a minimum/leave it out. You can find this sort of stuff on the internet and stuff about the movie being zeitgeist, avant-garde or whatever is not relevant or interesting and doesn't add value in my opinion. How do you feel? How does it capture the audience attention? Which emotions are being conveyed? Which film techniques do you notice and how is it used? How original is the movie? What is it influenced by? Is it a memorable movie? What is the message of the movie? These are the interesting questions to ask yourself when watching and reviewing a movie. Talk about your personal opinion/review of the movie and not describing in third person what the movie is about according to others/the general consensus on the internet. Most of this you already do, but you tend to steer away from your own perspective I feel like.
![“อ.เบียร์ คนตื่นธรรม” มาตามคำเรียกร้อง แหกศาสตร์ฮวงจุ้ย เตือนสติอย่างมงาย | แฉ 7 พ.ย. 67 [1/3]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/5fc4S3xBNfc/mqdefault.jpg)
This is one of the few movies that makes me actually feel sick to my stomach. The opening sequence alone was terrifying when I was younger.
One of the few horror films that genuinely creeps me out. A lot of it has to do with the music and the atmosphere. Also, the way Rachel slowly researches Samara and her past is done in such an unsettling way
So glad I found this channel. FINALLY....an intelligent movie reviewer who gets it ! ! Someone who understands and knows how to break down my kind of cinema. Someone who actually loves "weird" and "trippy" movies. Thank you 🙏
Yeah I’ve been following her since like freshman year in high school and I’m a senior in college now. She is criminally underrated
That’s a really interesting way to look at this film. I am so glad there is this platform for people to talk about their different perceptions on art. Thanks for the video!
The 💍 finally convinced me to fully switch from 📼 to 📀.
I love The Ring!! So happy to see you reviewing it :)
I still can't watch it alone at night by myself. ; )
@@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017 Ringu The Japanese version is also very terrifying to watch by Yourself at night
Though the film is a bit older now, it's still scary. The imagery in certain scenes is almost trying to bury itself in your psyche. Naomi's performance alone makes the movie that much more terrifying. Nice analysis..
For some reason when this film came out I decided to watch it on mushrooms. I damn near shit my pants when she came crawling through the television set. LMAO
What I truly love about this movie is that it's essentially a very VERY terrifying but also confusing opening sequence, and spending the next hour and half trying to figure out what the hell that was, while still at the end leaving a few questions unanswered or ambiguous making it even more terrifying.
seeing the ring in the theater with a packed audience was amazing. im so glad i have that memory. people freaked out at the end when we realized it wasnt over. have you seen the original japanese 'dark water'? same director as ringu. i consider it the ring's companion piece.
Check out the original Japanese "Ringu" (1998). The American is just meh, but the Japanese version creeped the f out of me. Build-up, raw emotions, music - you'll like it. :)
Btw, I've been binging your content for the last couple of days. Stay awesome. :)
Would have been intriguing to see what Lynch would've done with it
nightmare
I can hear 'Roy Orbison - Candy Colored Clown' in the BG, as she comes out of the Well...
I had no idea, but now I am kind of pissed
The main strength of the Ring was good use of the “keep your monster hidden” rule. As viewers we are presented with a series of Rorschach tests starting with the first victim, where we are left to imagine how she died and how her corpse came to be in its presented state. The protagonist herself falls into the trap by this, as a woman and as a mother interpreting the bread crumbs and filling in the gaps with her natural urge to act protectively towards children.
Gore Verbinski, "a kind of mainstream movie chameleon". Ha! PERFECT way of describing him!
One thing I hadn’t noticed one first viewing is that when her son watches the tape you can see Samara coming out of the well for a second before it stops
I was pretty disappointed with The Ring. Colour's all been leached out of the picture and wasn't scary for me. Bit of a slog to get through.
You might wanna consider reviewing Felidae, Threads, Barefoot Gen, The Mist, and Come Play (which is being released on the 30th).
I loved the comparison with Un chien andalou, i've never tought about that, but you are absolutely right!!. The Ring cursed tape is almost an experimental film within the movie.
Noticing that this film has themes similar to Videodrome is a fascinating connection. I had never thought of that but it strikes me as true.
Hope you remember to also check out the original 1998 version, and compare and contrast the style and viewing experience.
Bergman´s Persona has similar creepy images in the beginning of the film.
yeah, almost mentioned that.
@@deepfocuslens The Ring 2 is not as bad as Everyone says it is but it's still A very disappointing and A very confusing pointless Sequel
@@deepfocuslens In Ringu Sadako Yamamura's Father is An unnamed Japanese Sea Demon and They tried to put that in The Ring 2 which didn't work very well in The Ring 2
Great analysis of my favorite horror movie (though granted, I've never seen Rosemary's Baby or Psycho or VideoDrome)
The atmosphere is just something else. It maintains that unsettling, understated terror pretty much until the end.
Magnificent analysis of a marvellous film
Hi Maggie, did you ever review Let The Right One In ? Art House/ Horror/ Thriller all in one.
Funny that after revisiting this remake one or two years ago (and remembering how much I loved it when it came out), I thought it wasn't much more than a flashy, Hollywood take on the original. I don't find the original movie very scary at all, but I find it much more emotionally resonant, whereas this remake kind of reverses the proportion of style and substance. This analysis is an amazing reading of the film and a great example of why we need to look beyond authorial intentions, because I find Maggie put much more thought behind it than the creators themselves, and sure enough it is all there - the question is whether it was supposed to :)
This was one of the first horror films I ever watched. I've always liked things that are mildly scary, but didn't used to think I could handle horror and thought that all horror was in bad taste. But then I wanted to learn the art of scaring and figured that I couldn't do that unless I subjected myself to scary things. So I watched one of the only horror films that ever remotely intrigued me which was the Ring. And I loved it.
Something interesting I learned about this film: Originally, the film opened and closed with scenes featuring Chris Cooper as a child killer. At the start, Rachel would be interviewing him for a story, expressing disdain for him, and at the end, she would show him the tape, dooming him to die. Apparently the "subplot" was cut because Cooper's profile had risen significantly, making him likely the most well known actor in the film, and test audiences were disappointed that he was in the film so minimally.
Based on the description, I think the film is much stronger without that bookend; introducing a child killer and immediately forgetting about him doesn't really do much for the story, and actually kind of undermines the rest of the film (does this tape have something to do with that CHILD MURDERER we saw at the start? Why should we care about 4 teenagers dying when a CHILD MURDERER is in this movie?). Plus, the uncertainty in the ending is way more effective for a horror film.
You should watch the mothman prophecies that movie is spooky. It's a very underrated movie But it is very spooky. This other one that would recommend this kind of a thriller horror in the way. It's called Eye See You Its original title though is called D-tox Sylvester Stallone's is in it. It's not very well known But I think it's very underrated as well.
DFL kicks ass! Her criticisms are always spot on. I wonder if she's familiar with film critic Eileen Jones?
I liked it alot when it came out and have watched it a few times since then, I think I kinda disregarded it for awhile since it was so popular and marketed as big as every other mainstream horror movie at the time, also The Grudge being remade in the US and the Japanese horror influence was huge then, but I definitely have a deeper appreciation and understanding of The Ring now. I don't think I was aware that David Lynch was offered the chance and that would have been really interesting and now as I think of it there are kind of some eerie similarities to Lynch's Inland Empire, at least visually and maybe in tone at times, though Inland Empire is so abstract and much more involved or complex, really no comparison or connection of course but little images and nuanced details that come to mind could possibly be shared by each. I do want to watch The Ring again soon & I do remember that my old DVD has an extra feature including Samara's video tape that can be viewed . . . if one dares to. Lol
Have you seen a Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s film?
“Kairo” (2001) is also a horror film related to modern technology.
th-cam.com/video/EfoJpCSs2lU/w-d-xo.html
I don't disagree, but I'd have said it the other way around: that films draw on the grammar, syntax, vocabulary, and color pallet of dreams as a preexisting shorthand, and the affinity is particularly clear in The Ring. Naomi never gives a bad performance, and is always watchable; I think because there's someone home behind the eyes. When you first mentioned the film within a film I was waiting for the Andalusian Dog reference. I used to watch films in a sort of two-track mode: naively AND analytically. For me this created cognitive dissonance, so I now watch a new film twice: once each way. I've come to prefer it.
I just rewatched this film and I think I detected a new subtext/theme about parenthood and fatherlessness. I think that Noah dies at the end as a sort of punishment for not accepting the responsibilities of fatherhood and the pain he visited on Rachel and Aiden by rejecting them/not trying to be with them. Aiden is wandering around like a ghost himself, in part because of the lack of attention he received from his careerist mother and his absentee father. So his connection to Samara is sort of a bond of abandonment and disappointment (though obviously Samara is a different kind of elemental evil; the rotten child).
Insightful review as always! The original is revered and rightly so but this is one of the better remakes. On a related note...if you have ringing in your ear...
do you have an ear-ring?
This movie creeped me out when I first heard of it, but I guess I got over it before I actually watched it, so it didn't scare me. I just thought it was a good mystery film which was also pretty dark.
This was the scariest movie my father ever watched.
It’s way better than the Japanese original.. WAY.
Really enjoyed your review ! This movie was definitely before it’s time..
My G*d, I spelled the wrong kind of palette! Well, it was nice knowing you.
i should rewatch this movie, i watched it when i was 14 and i was just trying so hard not to be scared so i found it kind of boring i'm sure i'll appreciate it more now. Also you should review V/H/S if you haven't already.
have you considered watching the original ringu? i’ve never seen it, but i’m sure it would be interesting
This movie scared the daylights out of me, but i saw it when it first came out and had no idea what it was (just looking for a movie to see on a bored evening).
Can only imagine The Ring directed by David Lynch
Just rewatched this movie yesterday. The Grudge the day before, still like both movies as much as when they first came out. Nostalgic movies for sure, remember seeing them and how scared they both had me.
*Have yoy reviewed The Grudge 2004 already?
@deepfocuslens Hey Maggie, when you watched this at 12, were you already a film junkie, getting into the analysis thing or thinking about film as an art, or did that come later?
I was always curious for sure, and was always a film junkie. But I didn't start really analyze them in this type of fashion until maybe 17-18 years old.
@@deepfocuslens Ok. Wow, so you basically started your channel as soon as you got the analysis bug. That's so awesome. Honestly your output puts Siskel and Ebert to shame. I remember watching Stardust Memories as a kid and falling in love with movies after that.
@@deepfocuslens The Changeling from 1980 A Haunted House Movie starring George C. Scott Trish Van Devere and Melvin Douglas also has A Well with A Body in it
@@jackgarrison8497 That's cool. I've been meaning to check out the Changeling forever.
@@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017 It's A Great Scary Movie but just like Ringu did it's supposed to getting A modern Remake I think that could be A really big mistake trying to remake it
In the time of teen pop “horror” movies.. like , I know , what you did last summer , and such.. this , one stood out.. I know , it’s a remake .. great movie.. got , it right.. ! On social media.. also, VHS tapes were a made in Asia.. a huge .. thing.. there... from where the original came from...so, social media + current social media... well, versed review
Love your videos, reviews and awesome hair! So beautiful! 😍
Have you reviewed the original??
seattle Washington is very rainy and gloomy during the fall and winter
0:40 I find it so ironic he rejected this film. Because he created "The Glass Box" in Twin Peaks the Return. Which has a woman leave the box and kill the people watching it. Sound familiar? Guess we did get our David Lynch version of The Ring! Which was was as scary if not scarier than the Ring!
So if you were to sit down an interpret a YTP like "Batman Can't Stop Thinking About Sex" ..... ???
In all seriousness though, this may have been my second or third horror film (maybe even the first) in the true sense as a viewer. That brings back many pre-adolescent memories, much of which can be considered scarier than "The Ring". It did have the drained color palate on the tape: such an atmosphere just by means of lack of color. It just built to a short stretch of shock.
And, uhhh, let me put it this way. Family members have made fun of me for being terrified of Rankin/Bass's stop-motion "Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer", but in my humble opinion no live-action horror can hold a candle to creepy deer puppets that move in arthritic jolts and barely blink.
Review 2017's Ferdinand. I've Reviewed That One.
This made my day!!
Well made. Videotape imagery is amazing. Overrated movie, ultimately.
Have you seen Ringu? It covers pretty much the same ideas but in a way that I find to be more mature/interesting, and I also find it to be a lot more affective as a horror film.
I watched for the first time as a kid. I believe it took me 3 attempts to properly watch the final murder scene.
I still haven't seen the tape itself start to finish.
@@docbrown2045 It's on TH-cam The whole Tape
You should review Cat People (1942)
last time i saw this movie was 2002......havent seen it since 😨
What's your Halloween costume this year?
The original Japanese version didn't have that dark green look to it. It's pretty much the same except it's more subtle with the cinematography and writing. Also, the girl's face at the end is more hidden behind her hair and the close up only shows a white eye with no pupil. Definitely the superior version.
most beautiful youtuber ever!
Wow never been this early....
You've gotta be joking! The movie is terrible! Mainly, the characters are absurd.
The story doesn't do much for me as it is a "one-trick" premise where you just wait for the surprise to happen. A better film also involving digging into a well to find secrets would be the 1980 thriller The Changeling, starring George C. Scott. On the plus side, The Ring is a good film for parents to show their kids in order to warn them not to watch too much TV at night.
Love this film
Thanks for saying 'the first decade of the 2000s' instead of 2000s. The aughts as they should have been called, if aught didn't have the must of the past on it. But when people say 2000s for the aughts they are actually saying the name of the whole century, or is it millennium? So for most people they don't know what to call the aughts: the noughties, the thousands, the zeros, even the o's. Even the 10's has been confusing. Back in the 20th Century the phrase for the second decade was always the teens. But now people say the much clunkier 'tens'. Evidently people have forgotten that teen means ten. Coolness is ends up being stupid. Fortunately we living in the 20's now. And there isn't a doubt about where we are... at all.
My two cents, but I think you could leave out general information/descriptive information to a minimum/leave it out. You can find this sort of stuff on the internet and stuff about the movie being zeitgeist, avant-garde or whatever is not relevant or interesting and doesn't add value in my opinion. How do you feel? How does it capture the audience attention? Which emotions are being conveyed? Which film techniques do you notice and how is it used? How original is the movie? What is it influenced by? Is it a memorable movie? What is the message of the movie? These are the interesting questions to ask yourself when watching and reviewing a movie. Talk about your personal opinion/review of the movie and not describing in third person what the movie is about according to others/the general consensus on the internet. Most of this you already do, but you tend to steer away from your own perspective I feel like.
Not a fan. I like ringu better.
I found Ringu much worse
@@basehead617 Ringu and The Ring are both Great Movies
Your image is reversed
This movie is scary?pff what a joke
First!