But the subsequent video revolution deserves its own benchmark horror film, which the Japanese version, "Ringu," is among Asians, and which Verbinski's could become in the West.
Although the premise obviously sounds rather similar to this year's barely seen "FearDotCom" (where a visit to a website resulted in death), the film is actually a remake of the 1998 Japanese film "Ringu."
Hideo Nakata’s 1998 cult horror flick Ringu (The Ring) was a surprise hit that quickly spawned both its own prequel and sequel, so an American remake was pretty much inevitable.
Verbinski takes a mediocre concept (from the novel by Kôji Suzuki, adapted by screenwriter Ehren Kruger, using some elements from Hiroshi Takahashi's screenplay for the 1998 Japanese version called Ringu), and a fair but relatively unknown cast (Naomi Watts, Mulholland Drive , and Martin Henderson, Windtalkers ), and uses his talent for creepy visual artistry to make it an effective horror film.
Gore Verbinskis remake of Hideo Nakatas Ringu (a Japanese cult hit that spawned numerous sequels and inspired the slick but flawed FearDotCom) is deliciously implausible and deliriously unsubtle at times, yet it does a satisfying job of creating a world (okay, Seattle) where videotapes kill their viewers within seven days.
In the case of the new thriller The Ring -- remake of the 1998 Japanese hit, Ringu -- the formative forces swim into focus without effort.