The Grudge 2 (2006)

User Rating:

4.6/10   

Director:

Takashi Shimizu

Writers (WGA):

Stephen Susco (written by)
Takashi Shimizu (film "Ju-On: The Grudge")

Release Date:

13 October 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

What Was Once Trapped, Will Now Be Unleashed

Plot:

In Tokyo, a young woman (Tamblyn) is exposed to the same mysterious curse that afflicted her sister (Gellar). The supernatural force, which fills a person with rage before spreading to its next victim, brings together a group of previously unrelated people who attempt to unlock its secret to save their lives.

Plot Keywords:

Curse | Ghost | Hospital | Haunted House | Past

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Sarah Michelle Gellar	...	Karen
Amber Tamblyn	...	Aubrey
Arielle Kebbel	...	Allison
Takako Fuji	...	Kayako
Edison Chen	...	Eason
Sarah Roemer	...	Lacey
Matthew Knight	...	Jake
Misako Uno	...	Miyuki
Teresa Palmer	...	Vanessa
Ohga Tanaka	...	Toshio (as Oga Tanaka)
Yuya Ozeki	...	Toshio
Jennifer Beals	...	Trish
Christopher Cousins	...	Bill
Zen Kajihara	...	Folklore Guy
Takashi Matsuyama	...	Takeo

Also Known As:

El grito 2 (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
La maldición 2 (Colombia) (Venezuela) [es]
Der Fluch - The Grudge 2 (Germany) [de]
Garez 2 (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Grudge - Klatwa 2 (Poland) [pl]
Grudge - La maldición 2 (Mexico) [es]
I katara 2 (Greece) [el]
Kauna 2 (Finland) [fi]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, disturbing images/terror/violence, and some sensuality.

Runtime:

102 min | 108 min (Unrated Director's Cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Malaysia:18SG | Indonesia:Dewasa | Philippines:R-13 | Netherlands:16 | Ireland:15A | UK:15 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (British Columbia) | Finland:K-15 | Norway:15 | Singapore:PG | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | USA:PG-13 (certificate #42011) | Argentina:16 | Portugal:M/12 | France:-12 | Italy:T | South Korea:15 | India:UA | Sweden:15 | Australia:M | Japan:U | Iceland:16 | South Africa:13V

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

To keep the mood on the set light, the actors and director would often joke around and attempt to frighten one another. This included a Karaoke session performed by Shimizu, Takashi on Kebbel, Arielle's birthday.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Trish enters Jake's room, the floor in front of him is empty, and the camera turns to face Trish. When it's put back on Jake there is some kind of sport equipment on the floor.

Quotes:

Bill: You were late.

Movie Connections:

References The Ring (2002)

Mundane

Being a huge fan of the original Ju-On movies, as well as the original American remake, I was looking forward to this one. But my excitement dwindled right from the opening scene, as The Grudge 2 quickly became a predictable and mundane sequel. A typical American-ized sequel that sadly didn't follow the unique plot of Ju-On 2.

After Sarah Michelle Gellar's cameo, the movie focuses on her sister, but gives her nothing to do. What seems like a totally separate storyline inside an apartment building is more distracting than involving. The scares become very routine and there are so many characters here, that the viewer cannot become attached to any of them.

The movie does, however, kick it up in the final twenty minutes or so. And the ending is a lot darker and much more mean spirited than the original, and for that, it has to earn some points for not taking the safe way out.

The Grudge 2 is not a complete loss, but it could have been so much better.