Rings (2005)

Touches You

Too much of everything

Overrated

Just perfect...

Apart from being miles above the pedestrian, even ridiculous "Ring 2" (by much-hyped and overrated Japanese director Nakata) in terms of style, wit, and execution, this savvy, snappy little short introduces a whole new set of ideas to the Ring "myth" that could've given Nakata's clinker the shot of fresh blood it so desperately needed - mainly, the intriguing concept of the tape as a sort of "psycho virus" you have to pass on within 7 days in order to save your own life. This premise - which opens up all kinds of possibilities and suggests a whole bunch of analogies - could have been the basis for a terrific sequel. It's a shame and a pity the producers opted for the easy way out instead. What did they do to Ehren Kruger to make him drop this for the absurd piece of drivel that became "Ring 2"? Hollywood works in mysterious ways, indeed.

A short film that explores the back story of a couple of minor characters in Ring Two, and a potentially interesting way of expanding the Ring's story.Except it's migraine inducing and actually doesn't tell us anything especially new or important. It's got that annoying "flash cut till you spew" MTV throwback editing that makes everything feel a bit disjointed, so even though it's only 16 minutes long it still feels very thrown together and random rather than a tight little treat.Emily VanCamp deserves recognition though. She's an amazing actress who conveys warmth and vulnerability, and perhaps the only person you will find yourself caring for in this short film.What I do find intriguing is that when the characters are reintroduced in Ring Two, under the direction of Hideo Nakata, you are far more drawn into their story, despite considerably less screen time. Perhaps this is testament to his directing skills. or an indictment of Jonathan Liebesman's. It makes me a little concerned about Liebesman's prequel to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies- particularly as his previous effort "Darkness Falls" was less than inspiring.Still it's a 16 minute short, so there are obvious restrictions to storytelling here. It just makes me curious what the intention was here- to give audiences something interesting, or to sell a few extra dvds as a special feature?

It's far better! Scrap the soporific main feature and go for this beauty of a short film. Well, actually the sequel does make this look superb, but what we have here is an innovative 14-minute short that has an engrossingly taut layout and actually foreshadows the opening of "The Ring Two".So, after the opening death scene in "The Ring Two". This one goes back a week earlier and follows the teenage boy Jake who joins a small circle of teens, who are interested in the cursed videotape. Where they convince Jake to watch the video to save one of them. Then we watch Jake go through the mind-boggling experience, where he records and films the details. But when it starts to get the better of him he soon realises that this is no easy walk in the park and he's finding it hard to get somebody to watch his tape.The way the story opens up is an neat idea involving this urban legend of the cursed unmarked videotape becoming somewhat of an underground thrill ride for curious and extreme on lookers who just want to test out this dangerously bizarre mind trip. There are cult groups that have experienced this sensation, where they have recorded accounts that pop up on the Internet. It even touches on the idea if these images are something more, like an opening into another dimension than just illusion. Somehow this one packs a lot of realistic excitement, hair raising frights and very surreal visions within the limited time and it's still rather fulfilling in its subject matter. The atmosphere is highly cold and depressingly ominous with such intense performances. There's just much more substance and terrifying images here compared to its bigger brother. Even the filming techniques are extremely sharper with CGI that's more crisper, atmospheric camera-work and rapid-fire editing that fitted into the twitchy / on edge mood it was going for. The brisk pace never lets up or gives you a chance to get comfortable, because you get caught up in the frantic mess the main character falls into.A hauntingly gripping and very well executed short.

Rings is the bridge between The Ring and The Ring 2. In the six months between the 2 films the copy of the infamous videotape made by Rachel has multiplied many times (still no explanation as to how people know they're going to die) and it's become such an urban legend that there is a website devoted to it.Jake, the unfortunate high school kid at the start of The Ring 2, has watched the videotape in order to save the life of one of his so-called friends, thus taking on board the responsibility of making someone else watch it in 7 days or die by Samara's fright.Initially Jake is intrigued and is offered a glimpse into the bizarre world of post-videotape viewing that we only saw thru Rachel's eyes in the first. Nothing is explained in any greater detail but the paranormal universe Jake falls into is fleshed-out more and is highly spooky. The short even manages to outdo The Ring 2 by giving us a couple of frights. I don't care how ridiculous the movies are, the image of Samara climbing out the well will ALWAYS be spooky.Anyone who has seen The Ring 2 will already know what becomes of Jake and his would-be girlfriend Emily (the one he forces to watch the tape) but if you're a fan of the films then this is essential viewing. If you've yet to see The Ring 2 then it's the perfect introduction.