Having only heard disappointing reviews about "The Grudge", I went into this film with very low expectations.  I had remembered the television previews and decided that I would watch this film if for nothing else, than at least to see what all of the creepy images had to do with.  To my disbelief, this film actually had a decent plot and was told in an interesting enough manner, to keep me fully attentive during the over-drawn portions of the film(and there are many).

The film takes place in Tokyo and we are immediatly introduced to Karen(Sarah Michelle Gellar) and her boyfriend Doug.  They are foreign exchange students attending college and adapting to their new surroundings.  Karen is a social worker and is sent on her first case.  She is to take care of an elderly woman, struggling from what the doctors believe to be dementia.  Well, they are wrong.  As Karen finds out, there is something very wrong with the house this woman is living in and KAren apparently feels it the moment she walks in.  After a hair-raising evening, Karen is sent to a hospital so that she can be kept close watch on.  Oddly enough, the horror and images Karen saw in the house are now following her and won't leave her alone.  In fact, these images are following everyone that has visited the house, including the detectives sent in to see what was going on.  Why?  Did something happen in that house years ago??  Who is the little boy, that is just waaaaaaay too creepy???

These are the questions that will be answered throughout the remainder of the film.

"The Grudge" does a pretty good job of keeping the viewer rather tense and on the egde of their seat.  This film is another example of the Japanese horror film gone AMerican and I am very curious to see the original Japanese version of this film, as I feel that it would rely much less on the special effects for the scares.  No gore in this film and although the images are scary, our two villians are a little Japanese boy and his mother----not really the sort of folks that will give you nightmares.  It was a good decision to tell this story in non-linear form, as the plot would probably have been much duller and predictable had they not.

All in all, this is a decent film, certainly worth a viewing.  Not suitable for children as the depictions of ghosts are probably going to keep them up nights.

Enjoy!
Having only heard disappointing reviews about "The Grudge", I went into this film with very low expectations. I had remembered the television previews and decided that I would watch this film if for nothing else, than at least to see what all of the creepy images had to do with. To my disbelief, this film actually had a decent plot and was told in an interesting enough manner, to keep me fully attentive during the over-drawn portions of the film(and there are many). The film takes place in Tokyo and we are immediatly introduced to Karen(Sarah Michelle Gellar) and her boyfriend Doug. They are foreign exchange students attending college and adapting to their new surroundings. Karen is a social worker and is sent on her first case. She is to take care of an elderly woman, struggling from what the doctors believe to be dementia. Well, they are wrong. As Karen finds out, there is something very wrong with the house this woman is living in and KAren apparently feels it the moment she walks in. After a hair-raising evening, Karen is sent to a hospital so that she can be kept close watch on. Oddly enough, the horror and images Karen saw in the house are now following her and won't leave her alone. In fact, these images are following everyone that has visited the house, including the detectives sent in to see what was going on. Why? Did something happen in that house years ago?? Who is the little boy, that is just waaaaaaay too creepy??? These are the questions that will be answered throughout the remainder of the film. "The Grudge" does a pretty good job of keeping the viewer rather tense and on the egde of their seat. This film is another example of the Japanese horror film gone AMerican and I am very curious to see the original Japanese version of this film, as I feel that it would rely much less on the special effects for the scares. No gore in this film and although the images are scary, our two villians are a little Japanese boy and his mother----not really the sort of folks that will give you nightmares. It was a good decision to tell this story in non-linear form, as the plot would probably have been much duller and predictable had they not. All in all, this is a decent film, certainly worth a viewing. Not suitable for children as the depictions of ghosts are probably going to keep them up nights. Enjoy!