This remake is a prime example of what happens when an intriguing story is compromised to accommodate the ego of a 'star' actor and a producer who figures that an American audience is unable to relate to anything that isn't connected to life as it is lived in the USA. I used to admire Sam Raimi and believe that he was gutsy enough to trust the public's intelligence - how times have changed! First of all the original plot lines are shifted to give more focus on the star and even scenes that rely upon a steady and sustained growth of anxiety are paced at a faster rate when compared to the original Ju-on movies. This harms the ambiance, but was presumably deemed necessary to make sure that the camera returned to Gellar all the quicker and to cut down the running time of the picture as a whole.
The setting of the story - Japan - could be entirely dispensed with as far as the use made of it in the film goes. We are given western (that is to say American) characters whenever possible. Tokyo apparently even needs an American to run its social services department; Gellar is such an asset to him that she is accepted and pressed rapidly into service despite being without skills and unable to speak more than a few phrases of Japanese.
The camera often stays xenophobically chained to the American actors. A Japanese security guard who is killed in the original movie (in a way that eerily advances the plot) just walks down a corridor and is never seen again in the remake. Some of the most memorable characters and sequences in 'Ju-on' were scrapped simply because they weren't good for Gellar or the other Americans. In a nutshell, a tale that worked well when told via an ensemble cast became threadbare and vapid when transformed into a star vehicle. Sarah Michelle Gellar simply did not have the talent, personality or gravitas to carry the story.
Like George Raft (who was legendary for demanding script changes whenever he was afraid that his image might suffer), Gellar evidently wished her do-gooding volunteer character to be spotlessly presented. She has to have a boyfriend (to prevent suggestions that her character is abnormal, unattractive or a lesbian?). When she finds the ghostly boy apparently trapped in a cupboard, she reports his presence and makes sure to give the impression that she was caring enough to ask him to come downstairs with her...a statement that makes no sense given the boy's paranormal nature and her terrified reaction to his appearance.
The star obviously didn't want an actor of any great depth or skill cast as her love interest. Jason Behr who plays that role is entirely superfluous to the plot; in fact, when his character was supposed to be asleep or unconscious, it was hard to notice any difference.
The rewrites of Stephen Susco (aided and abetted by Sam Raimi's ad hoc changes during filming) tried to water down the disorienting shifts in time and continuity that are such an important feature of the Ju-on films. When it became plain that they had written themselves into a corner, spoon-fed explanations were inserted and characters began to make judgements that were worthy of a psychic hotline.
Informed that one of the female players has disappeared, the detective in charge of the investigation immediately (without hesitation and to the exclusion of every other option) orders the collection of the security video tapes at her place of work - thus conveniently removing an obstacle erected by shoddy writing. Some scenes were shifted by as much as 57 minutes from the places they first occupied in Susco's treatment - this suggests cobbling a tangled mess together rather than inspired editing.
Viewing the DVD with the cast and crew commentary switched on is a cringe-worthy experience. Time and time again, the actors and producer find much amusement in mocking Japanese customs and even the Shinto faith is described in sneering terms. There are also comments which show the extent to which the Director was pushed into artistic and technical changes by both Raimi and Gellar.
I recommend that you avoid this lifeless clone and get the original Japanese movies - but opt for subtitles. The English dubbing, when available, is famously disconcerting - the accents (provided by an uninspired cast of British voice actors) are awful.
The setting of the story - Japan - could be entirely dispensed with as far as the use made of it in the film goes. We are given western (that is to say American) characters whenever possible. Tokyo apparently even needs an American to run its social services department; Gellar is such an asset to him that she is accepted and pressed rapidly into service despite being without skills and unable to speak more than a few phrases of Japanese.
The camera often stays xenophobically chained to the American actors. A Japanese security guard who is killed in the original movie (in a way that eerily advances the plot) just walks down a corridor and is never seen again in the remake. Some of the most memorable characters and sequences in 'Ju-on' were scrapped simply because they weren't good for Gellar or the other Americans. In a nutshell, a tale that worked well when told via an ensemble cast became threadbare and vapid when transformed into a star vehicle. Sarah Michelle Gellar simply did not have the talent, personality or gravitas to carry the story.
Like George Raft (who was legendary for demanding script changes whenever he was afraid that his image might suffer), Gellar evidently wished her do-gooding volunteer character to be spotlessly presented. She has to have a boyfriend (to prevent suggestions that her character is abnormal, unattractive or a lesbian?). When she finds the ghostly boy apparently trapped in a cupboard, she reports his presence and makes sure to give the impression that she was caring enough to ask him to come downstairs with her...a statement that makes no sense given the boy's paranormal nature and her terrified reaction to his appearance.
The star obviously didn't want an actor of any great depth or skill cast as her love interest. Jason Behr who plays that role is entirely superfluous to the plot; in fact, when his character was supposed to be asleep or unconscious, it was hard to notice any difference.
The rewrites of Stephen Susco (aided and abetted by Sam Raimi's ad hoc changes during filming) tried to water down the disorienting shifts in time and continuity that are such an important feature of the Ju-on films. When it became plain that they had written themselves into a corner, spoon-fed explanations were inserted and characters began to make judgements that were worthy of a psychic hotline.
Informed that one of the female players has disappeared, the detective in charge of the investigation immediately (without hesitation and to the exclusion of every other option) orders the collection of the security video tapes at her place of work - thus conveniently removing an obstacle erected by shoddy writing. Some scenes were shifted by as much as 57 minutes from the places they first occupied in Susco's treatment - this suggests cobbling a tangled mess together rather than inspired editing.
Viewing the DVD with the cast and crew commentary switched on is a cringe-worthy experience. Time and time again, the actors and producer find much amusement in mocking Japanese customs and even the Shinto faith is described in sneering terms. There are also comments which show the extent to which the Director was pushed into artistic and technical changes by both Raimi and Gellar.
I recommend that you avoid this lifeless clone and get the original Japanese movies - but opt for subtitles. The English dubbing, when available, is famously disconcerting - the accents (provided by an uninspired cast of British voice actors) are awful.