The acting?  Not bad, with the exception of a few Japanese characters who ham it up far too much.  The main characters talk very little, however – can’t take away from that swooping, scary violin score, you know.  Their real job is basically to be scared, which they do well.  Equally acceptable is the directing, which offers a few frights; the Japanese setting, which lends authenticity; and the cinematography, which is appropriately grey and blue throughout.

The real problem is the script, which is a redundant rehash of the first.  It wasn’t great to begin with and now it’s worse.  And again, that’s assuming you like watching people being murdered and terrified to begin with.  And that, my friends, is the crux.  Because what’s the point of a horror movie?  And do we really want those images in our head, when the world is constantly pumping out terrifying, gruesome news that is real?

American horror movies tend to focus on human evil, but this one has a supernatural bent, with many occult elements, including exorcism and child abuse.  Worse, however, is the film’s overt message, which is that nothing can stop a curse once it’s unleashed. 

“When someone dies in the grip of a powerful rage, a curse is born,” states the opening sequence of the film.  “The curse gathers in that place of death.  Those who encounter it will be consumed by its fury.”

Even if you believe this mumbo jumbo, you’ve got to trust that there’s something greater than revenge in the world, which is nowhere near as powerful as the forces of good.  The great news is, there is.

AUDIENCE:  Adults only

DVD EXTRAS:

• Deleted Scenes
• Multiple Behind the Scenes Featurettes
• Unrated Extended Cut Exclusives, including:
  • Extra footage “too scary to be shown in theaters”
  • Tales from “The Grudge” with Sam Raimi introduction
  • Additional Deleted Scenes & Featurette

CAUTIONS:

• Drugs/Alcohol:   None.
• Language/Profanity:   A few mild expletives.
• Occult:  Continual references to a curse; characters discuss witchcraft-like practices; flashback scene with exorcism and child make to “take” the demons from a woman.
• Sexual Content/Nudity:  Husband yells at wife, implying that she is being unfaithful; “Ghost child” appears naked in several scenes but without visible genitalia; locker room scene with multiple high school girls undressing and conversing while wearing panties and bras; high school girls refer to “getting it on;” one suggests that her teenage friend should have sex with her boyfriend in a haunted house, because they are so “adventurous;” teenage couple visit a hotel together and pick out a room, where boy showers (seen partially-nude while showering, then in a towel) and girls looks at condom; they kiss and prepare to have sex but are interrupted;
• Violence:   Multiple deaths of varying degrees, but few are bloody or gruesome.  Wife dies after husband strangles her.  Child dies after father drowns him.  Cat dies after owner throws him violently.  Man dies after oil is poured on his head.  Woman is killed then thrown from the roof of a building.  Characters are continually haunted, terrified and touched by a ghost before “succumbing” to her – usually offscreen.