I usually make it a point to see all of the parts of a series of movies before I watch them just so I’m not spending half of the film trying to catch up to what everyone else already knows, but with THE GRUDGE 3, I decided to go in a little bit under-informed. I’ve seen the first GRUDGE, and I saw JU-ON many years ago, but I somehow skipped THE GRUDGE 2 completely. No matter, though—this installment in the deadly adventures of creepy-crawly ghost Kayako (Aiko Horiuchi) and her equally creepy offspring Toshio (Shimba Tsuchiya) caught me up and dragged me along.
We start off with Jake (Matthew Knight), sole survivor of THE GRUDGE 2, trying to convince his doctor in the mental hospital (Shawnee Smith) that if she leaves him alone, he’ll be in danger from “her”—the her being crawling white freaky ghost Kayako. That turns out bad, of course. We then switch back to the apartments in Chicago where all the bad mojo went on with the murder and the what-not and it seems tenants have been mass exodus-ing ever since. This is bad news for apartment manager Max (Gil McKinney), his about-to-move-away sister Lisa (Johanna E. Braddy), and his younger, chronically ill sister Rose (Jadie Hobson). Weird stuff keeps happening, Kayako’s sister Naoko (Emi Ikehata) arrives on the scene, having been haunted by nightmares, and warns Lisa that in order to save her family from the rage-filled curse surrounding the building, she must eliminate the spirit of Kayako once and for all.
Now, I’m not saying that THE GRUDGE 3 is the most original thing around, and it definitely has its flaws, but it scared me. There are scenes in here—one in particular with Rose when she’s almost asleep—that gave me more heebie-jeebies than any recent horror movie. Director Toby Wilkins does a nice job of not making ALL the scare moments purely “makes you jump” horror, and there’s a balance of killing, gore, haunting images of pale ghosts, and genuine suspense to sustain the film throughout instead of feeling like a lot of build up. The acting and the characters are also actually a lot more engaging than most recent horror offers, even if the sick little girl, pretty heroine sister, nice guy brother, and sister of the ghost are all a bit clichéd attempts at heartstring pulling. Sadly, Shawnee Smith is vastly underused, and even though Kayako and Toshio look scary every time, it becomes a bit too predictable. I mean, even if you’ve just read the summaries of the earlier GRUDGES, you’ll know the basic track this one will follow, but there are some unexpected twists and turns along the way, and the background given by Naoko about her sister adds to the franchise’s mythology.
Overall, I liked THE GRUDGE 3 a lot more than I expected, and even with some pieces of Routine Horror 101, it’s actually well-acted, well-directed, and scary when it should be.
– Amber Goddard
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
