Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Horror, Murder, Ghosts, Haunted House, Supernatural, Suspense, Marriage, Police, Detectives
Tagline: It never forgives. It never forgets.
Plot: Karen (SARAH MICHELLE GELLAR) is an exchange student studying social work in Japan who innocently agrees to cover for a nurse who didn't show up for work. When she enters the assigned home, she discovers an elderly American woman, Emma (GRACE ZABRISKIE), who is lost in a catatonic state while the rest of the house appears deserted and disheveled.As she is tending to the stricken old woman, Karen hears scratching sounds from upstairs. When she investigates, she is faced with a supernatural horror more frightening than she could ever imagine. Within this house, a chain of terror has been set in motion resulting from a terrifying evil that was born years before. As more people die, Karen is pulled into the cycle of horror and learns the secret of the vengeful curse that has taken root in this house. Now she must stop it before it’s too
More Plot Descriptions
 |
Related Movies:
|
 |
Behind the Scenes:
Read more about the production
| |
 Discussion forum for this movie
|
| |
 The Grudge managed to hold my interest for about 30 minutes. But it's pretty much a one-trick pony, and, after a while, that trick loses its ability to impress. This is a haunted house film, and is packed to the rafters with horror movie clichés. "Boo!" moments abound.  --James Berardinelli (ReelViews)
It's just too, too much, and anyone other than the most cretinous viewer, or those who stepped out for popcorn at an inopportune moment, ought to feel insulted.--Michael O'Sullivan (Washington Post)
But where The Grudge truly gets a leg up on its competition is its adherence to the essence of its progenitors. With an entirely Japanese crew and the unique experience of having told this tale several times before, Shimizu transfers his Asian sensibilities whole cloth onto this new version. The results are appealing and easily digestible, but have a pace and a feeling -- over and above the scares -- that would have been lost with a Western director. B+--Rob Vaux (Flipsidemovies.com)
There are still logic flaws and people still don’t run fast enough out of harm’s way. But Hollywood has apparently learned a new lesson – when they next remake a foreign film, they would do well to import the director too.  --Harrison Cheung (Movie-Gurus.com)
In the final analysis, the thin, repetitive plot, shallow, one-dimensional characterizations, and a nihilistic, evasive ending are more than compensated by highly effective jump-scares and atmosphere, relentless pacing, and the non-linear approach to storytelling that helps to create and sustain disorientation and unease in the audience, all to disturbing and chilling effect. 8/10--Mel Valentin (Movie-Vault.com)
Very much in the style of a previous American remake of Japanese horror, The Ring, it's an effectively spooky time at the movies, but boy is it ever silly. Creepy? Yes, but not much more than that.  --Vince Leo (Qwipster.net)
Predictable things make us jump in Grudge. We see a tub full of water or an attic filled with cobwebs, and we know scares are coming, but Shimizu startles us all the same.  --Sean O'Connell (FilmCritic.com)
It has some very tense parts a nice performance from Gellar and great direction, although it's not strung together very well. It's pretty good...until you start thinking about it. --Brian Gallagher (MovieWeb)
THE GRUDGE has the weirdly random disconnect of a dreamscape. The only problem is that the living are so annoyingly dense, rooting for them is out of the question. Perhaps that’s what Shimizu or Susco had in mind, but I wouldn’t bet on it.  --Andrea Chase (Killer Movie Reviews)
If you consider sudden shrieks of music and pale Asian children the pinnacle of all things terrfiying, then "The Grudge" is your next favorite movie. --Scott Weinberg (eFilmCritic.com)
The remake offers a glimmer of coherence: Americans who feel lost in translation are apt to lose their minds. But "The Grudge" adds nothing to the haunted-house genre aside from the horror of spilled ramen noodles on tatami mats. --Jami Bernard (New York Daily News)
Grudge is scare-heavy horror film, where little time is devoted to actual exposition and character development. With so many frightening moments dominating the running length, characters never take shape and gaping plot holes leave the viewer thoroughly confused. --Jack Moore (The Movie Insider)
|
Capitalizing on the success of The Ring, another remake of a Japanese horror film, was a terrific idea, but who would of thought that such could ever be so dull? The Grudge makes for one hell of a snoozefest, but not much else.  --Danny Baldwin (BucketReviews.com)
There is no twist, no "reveal," no tying up of all the clues to make us see the clever plotting that was lurking beneath the surface all along. It's disappointing to realize that the film truly IS nothing more than a series of people dying, albeit in armrest-gripping fashion. It's good for a lark, but we usually like our thrillers to have something more to them. C--Eric D. Snider (EricDSnider.com)
Part Japanese horror movie in English, part ‘Buffy vs the Haunted House’, this is an average horror film that’s heavy on style and atmosphere but not particularly scary or engaging. --Matthew Turner (ViewLondon)
Japanese director gives his own horror film a surprisingly intelligent Hollywood makeover - pointless self-replication perhaps, but that is the nature of curses. 7/10--Anton Bitel (Movie Gazette)
This film offers scares, real honest-to-goodness scares. There are a lot of sudden jolts here, and jolt me they did. Have you ever jumped back with so much force, it feels like you took the theatre seat a few inches with you? THE GRUDGE made me do that and more than once.--Scott W. Davis (HorrorExpress.com)
Shimizu's first movie in English is sufficiently moody and has the requisite slow pacing and quick scares to make you jump, but it's never deeply frightening. C+--Christy Lemire (TheJournalNews)
A few problems, however, in that he has watered down some of his scariest stuff. Again, the audience was terrified when Kayako emerged from beneath bed sheets in one scene, but here Shimizu tips his hat, showing something under there before the big reveal. -- (Bloody-Disgusting.com)
A remake done right by original director Takashi Shimizu. It's loaded with a lot of cool scare-scenes, but be warned of the lack of story and odd sounds the ghosts make. I personally like it better than the Japanese remake. Recommended. 8/10--FrighT MasteR (UHM)
|
|
Movie Database
In Theaters
