Death by Video
The Ring
Review by Ross Anthony

Good production value, shot through a TV tube blue-ish filter. The ring is a fatal videotape that makes viewing a matter of life and death. More the latter than the The Ringformer. Eerie and scary, but unfortunately too satanic for my taste.

The picture opens in classic B horror film style: two college age girls, an empty house, a TV that won't stay turned off, a telephone, various close up shots on household appliances and a sound track that amplifies common noises to the nth decibel -- oh and of course -- somebody gets killed.

From there everything escalates, the scope of the story, the depth, even the style of direction. It becomes reminiscent of "The Sixth Sense," which I loved. However, that reminiscence proves more of a dabble than a promise and despite solid production quality, the film holds dearer to its "Blair Witch" guerilla horror feel.

Admittedly, the "scary movie" is not my genre of preference. That said, I was expecting DreamWorks would impress me with this one. Instead, despite a nail-curling compelling picture, (largely due to the ending and theme) I was left disappointed.

Oh, btw, the video glitch on the DreamWorks logo was a nice touch.



  • The Ring. Copyright © 2002.
  • Starring Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, David Dorfman, Brian Cox, Jane Alexander, Linday Frost, Amber Tamblyn, Rachael Bella.
  • Directed by Gore Verbinski.
  • Screenplay by Ehren Kruger.
  • Produced by Walter F. Parkes, Laurie MacDonald at DreamWorks.



Grade..........................B-



Copyright © 2001. Ross Anthony, currently based in Los Angeles, has scripted and shot documentaries, music videos, and shorts in 35 countries across North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. For more reviews visit: RossAnthony.com


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Last Modified: Saturday, 16-Sep-2006 07:55:36 PDT