I anticipated that “The Ring 2,” which promised to be scarier than the first, would have me closing my eyes during most of it. The scream-worthy sequel starring the original characters Rachel (Naomi Watts) and her overly pale son Aidan (David Dorfman) begins six months after the original ends. “The Ring Two” possesses the same dark quality that the first movie had, but this time the shock value has been raised. On a few occassions, I was caught off guard by the distinct attempts to have audience members fall from their seats: images of the severely disfigured bodies with their mouths twisted open in mid scream as they died, the haunting of Samara (Kelly Stables), and the ominous images on the video tape.
The movie begins as the first one did, with teenagers viewing the tape and their unfortunate fate because of it. When Rachel learns of this, she knows instantly and retrieves the tape, only to burn it and anger Samara. Things suddenly change as Aidan begins having nightmares and images of the darkhaired girl behind him in photographs start to appear. Aidanʼs temperature begins to decline rapidly and with the help of Rachelʼs boss Max (Simon Baker), she checks him into the hospital. Aidan explains to Rachel that Samara canʼt hear him when he sleeps and as he does, Rachel sees the images that he does—images that were left out of the first movie and that can explain the strange reoccurance of Samaraʼs presence in their lives. This new montage leaves Rachel to discover that Samara was adopted by Anna and Richard Morgan, both of whom killed themselves, and seeking the help of her birth mother played by Sissy Spacek.
The movie unravels into something that doesnʼt necessarily follow the ideals of the first one. I do dare say that it is creepier than the first one, with a sequence at the end that brought horrified screams to the theater, followed by heavy applause as the movie reached another climax in the midst of a few scary moments and left Rachel and Aidan with a resolution.
I recommend seeing”The Ring” before viewing the sequel, as there are some parts from the first movie that come back to haunt the viewer. This movie is set up for the shock value, and not necessarily the story line. While being somewhat creative, is slightly lost through the need to scare the audience.
Naomi Watts is fantastic; her eyes are always filled with the horror of what might come, of what could result from this, and of the desperation to end this turmoil that has taken over her sonʼs mind. Likewise, David Dorfman is nothing short of creepy; his eyes are always wide with the knowledge of the evil Samara is about to cause. His skin is pale and his voice is wretched with fear.
Both play their parts as well as they should, and there is nothing poor to say about the acting. Both know these characters and do their best to portray them, even with a script that could have been better.
“The Ring Two” is there to scare, and it does. It puts a new layer on the original, filling in holes, making the first film just a tad more scary, and a tad more understandable. I suggest seeing it if you enjoyed the first one. It will definitely keep you glued to your seat.