The Grudge 3

To be honest, i was expecting perhaps something, probably too much, that would perhaps be original and new to the third grudge. But i think this was even worse than the others. Nearly the entire movie takes place in the same apartment building with the same stupid people who don't believe anything. This is simply the same story told yet again. The ending wasn't really surprising. It ends so that yet another Grudge can come out in the future. Grudge 4 will most likely be announced, if it's not already announced, in the near future. Rated R because more blood, but not really gore so much. i would say this is a decent movie other than the fact that it is the same old stuff. Come on Hollywood! Give us some originality! 4 out of 10

I really liked the Japanese films (Ju-on and Ju-on 2), while the American remake was decent enough and it's sequel while I wasn't that taken by it still it had its moments. The latter two films received cinema releases where the remake was a big hit, but the second sequel (The Grudge 3) would see it hit the straight to DVD market. Watching you can see why. However that's not a bad thing, as I was actually surprised by it. It could've been worse. In some ways I prefer it over "The Grudge 2", but there's no doubts the story keeps within the same grounds of the first two films --- similar investigations, story progression, imagery and scares. We've seen it before, but there's one or two fresh developments regarding Kayako and another is its supposedly set entirely in America (except for one brief shot in Tokyo).

The third film continues on from the events of the last film where the curse was affecting an American family in a dingy apartment building. The sole survivor of the massacre a young boy is hospitalised, but is tortured by visions of the vengeful spirits Kayako and Toshio. Soon his fate is stamped, and now another family (an older brother and his two sisters) in the apartment find themselves in the path of these vengeful spirits. However there's a mysterious lady that has come Tokyo and moved in to the apartment to hopefully put a stop to this curse.

Very standard, but acceptable retread. The budget is considerably lower; as the make-up FX and special effects go on to show it. The ghosts and the jerky movements this time just seemed to lack that menacing and unnerving edge they once held, due to over-used make-up and too well lit scenes where they would creep up in. However the shuddery music score and sound FX is effectively skin-crawling and the air is dripping with a glum atmosphere of dread. Although the chills and tension falls on the uneven side, as some moments work while others fall a long way short. The problem might lie in that at times it was trying to be subtle, but then chooses to be blatant in its acts. Some stages felt bland (just like the second film) and the script is rather shallow, but the pacing seemed better handled. Compared to the other films, it goes against the grain with a linear storyline but remains just as slow-grinding with it growing darker the further along it went. As if there's no real escaping this stinging threat, as fate has a shocking twist or two waiting. The performances are able enough with the likes of Matthew Knight, Emi Ikehata, Johanna Braddy, Jadie Hobson and Shawnee Smith.

The problem with these films is two fold... one they don't make much sense. I like my horrors to have 'rules' that the characters and ghouls should stick by and in these movies it's just a free for all. The character just does what it wants to who it wants when it wants. I, do not WANT, that. Secondly, it's just all too bland and boring. Yes, all three of them. But when the original director can't even be bothered to turn up and complete his own trilogy, you know you are in trouble. I would rather watch anything else than another Grudge movie. I had to watch all three for work and to give them their certifications... the hardest two days I've spent in the viewing theatre, I can tell you. By the 60th minute I just wanted it all to end. So Producers... no more please. This series should be over.

It seems the majority of the reviews thus far have been written by viewers who, after not enjoying either of the two previous films, decided to weigh in on what is ultimately a complete mockery of a great series.

First I'll tackle the good things about this film, of which there are few, but they deserve mentioning and as much of a reprieve as anyone can give them. Aiko Horiuchi replaces Takako Fuji as Kayako (creepy crackling voice lady) and picks up the role fairly well. Any fault in her appearance lies with the director, Toby Wilkins, who I will get to in a moment. The only other two notable performances come from the female leads, Johanna Braddy and Takatzuna Mukai and might not so much be notable as much as they just sharply contrast their terrible surroundings.

Now, on to the awful stuff. I think the large majority of the critics of the first two films, as I have understood them on here, find that the they were cryptic and difficult to follow. They have gotten their wish for an easy to interpret, spoon-fed, linear-flowing, cheesy horror film in The Grudge 3. Gone are the intelligent and subtle left-to-the-imagination disappearance kills. Artistic and suspenseful cinematography have been replaced by bland, formulaic and frightfully comical scenes. Brad Keene and Toby Wilkins have crafted an hour-and-a-half long slap in the face of director Takashi Shimizu who re-invented the haunted house horror film by making his own rules and breaking all the ones in the book.

Normally I am given pause when criticizing the artistic vision of writers, directors and actors who put their work on the line for what is largely a very unforgiving audience. In this case, however, the writer and director were toying with another man's vision and the hard work and creative energy he expended trying to bring something original into the world. I am dumbstruck by how a duo could miss the theme of a series so entirely. Ultimately, The Grudge 3 adds nothing to the mythology of the films and takes away a substantial amount.

I had very low expectations for this film. I had read some of the reviews on here (good and bad) and wasn't holding out much hope. If you've fallen in love with the Ju-On and Grudge films in the way I have in the past month your curiosity will probably get the better of you. That's what happened to me, but being prepared for a bad movie I was able to enjoy it for what it was. Yes it changes the storyline, yes it's cashing in, yes parts of it were illogical, but something about it wasn't that bad. I'm not going to even bother going in to all the ways it's wrong because I'm sure people must have done that many times already on here. It wasn't the worst movie I've ever seen or even close. For me the Grudge 2 still had the power to scare but here the fear factor was gone completely which was a great shame. Some die hard fans of the series are saying it's just as scary as the first two, some people are even saying it's one of the scariest films they've seen which makes me question their mental age. If they found this film scary I don't know how they even got to it because by all rights the first two would have scared them so much they'd have probably had a heart attack - literally scared to death... This film wasn't even slightly scary but something about it was still quite enjoyable. Maybe it's just because I love the series so much, maybe it was the characters, the pace, I don't know, and sitting through the whole thing was worth it for the last twenty minutes which I found to be actually pretty exciting. It's no surprise to hear rumours that Grudge 4 is in the works , and after that Grudge 5 is a pretty safe bet, they'll be cashing in on this series 'til the cows come home. W*nkers. Thanks