kinospot: Grudge 2

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Directed by: Takashi Shimizu.

Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar (as Karen Davis), Amber Tamblyn (as Aubrey Davis), Edison Chen (as Eason), Arielle Kebbel (as Allison), Jennifer Beals (as Trish), Teresa Palmer (as Vanessa), Misako Uno (as Miyuki), Sarah Roemer (as Lacey), Matthew Knight (as Jake), Takako Fuji (as Kayako Saeki), Ohga Tanaka (as Toshio Saeki).

Set within two years after the first film and between two countries. Karen's sister, Audrey, been affected by the supernatural curse, and trying to find the origin of it in order to find a way to free herself. But what has this quest got to do with the families who are living in Chicago, a photojournalist from Hong Kong,and the three schoolgirls from Tokyo's International High School?

This review is really a word of warning, if you've seen any of the earlier Japanese versions of this story you've seen this movie before. If you've seen all four of the earlier films, you've really seen everything (except the frightening opening with Bill Pullman) and you'd best wait for home video.
I understand that the film makers wanted to make sure that this film worked and made them money, so they repeated what worked, even casting the same Japanese actors for the kid and other roles; but it would have been nice if they had done more that was new beyond the opening sequence.
This isn't to say that the film is bad, its not, rather, its just that unless you're walking in to the film fresh odds are you're going to be like me and know what each five or ten minutes is going to bring because of the set up of the sequence.
For me it was a 6 out of 10, for fresh eyes probably higher.