Review of Ju-on: The Grudge (2002) by Keenan S — 27 Dec 2013

I was only twelve when the 2004 remake came out and I remember being scared by it when I watched it (When you're younger, your taste in horror flicks generally isn't all that good). While the remake is still a guilty pleasure of mine since I still have fond memories of it, I was curious to see the Japanese original and I was not disappointed.

Indeed, the original film is superior to its remake, and it's also a suitably creepy little horror flick. Unlike the more sanitized remake, the curse is much more sinister and spreads like wildfire as it consumes and destroys the lives of anyone who enters the house.

The film follows multiple characters as they all come into contact with the house in some form or another and the viewer gets to watch as they are destroyed by the curse and become part of it themselves as it spreads from person to person.

While it's no masterpiece of the horror genre, sadly this Japanese original has been mostly overlooked in the wake of the remake. If you have a fondness for Japanese horror flicks, Ju-On is definitely something to check out.