Great expectations almost always lead to disappointment. Such is the problem with all sequels to very successful films-you almost never think the sequel was anywhere near as good as the first. I was eagerly anticipating The Ring 2, which is directed by Hideo Nakata, the genius behind the original Japanese Ringu. But his involvement doesn’t seem to have helped much, as another high-profile sequel turns out to be a disaster.
The Ring was a real surprise that was both effectively scary and disturbing, two things that are becoming increasingly less common in modern horror films. It could have been laughable (a killer tape, irritable horses, lighthouses, a scary little girl with terrible hair, etc.) if it hadn’t been so genuinely creepy. It also cemented the box office appeal of rising star Naomi Watts, so good recently in We Don’t Live Here Anymore and I Huckabees. Unfortunately, she must have been hard up for cash after doing several indies in a row, as there is no other reason to have made this shockingly unnecessary sequel.
There is alarmingly little plot for a two-hour film, and the storyline that does exist makes absolutely no sense. Even worse, the awful script doesn’t attempt to answer any of the many existing questions left over from the original, either. When the mysterious killer tape arrives in Rachel (Watts)’s new hometown, she quietly wonders, “How is this possible? We only made one copy!” And that’s it. No other explanation is ever given or considered. Apparently audiences just need to know that the evil little girl Samara is still out there and as irritated as ever.
While the first Ring played up the creepy factor through a slow build of tense and ominous situations, the sequel relies almost exclusively on lame shots of gore to scare its audience. Even the computer-generated effects are appalling throughout, including a scene where Rachel and her young son are attacked by a herd of deer-an image that could have been genuinely frightening but instead just made the audience laugh.
In fact, the audience did more laughing than screaming during the film, and as the credits began to roll at the end, a good portion of the crowd loudly booed. Need I say more? Samara might be pissed off at Rachel and her son, but nothing is truly scarier than an unsatisfied moviegoer.
