In the 2000s, American remakes of Japanese works were all the rage. Call Lost, The Curse, or The Ring are just a few examples that introduced the world to the most chilling stories. And it is precisely the latter, The Ring, the film I would like to talk about today for the impact it had. While I always stand in favor of original works, the truth is that this film was the one that popularized worldwide the terrible curse of the videotape, a frenzy that took over the Internet long before platforms like TikTok existed.
The video that kills you in 7 days
The Ring revolves around a curse: those who watch a particular videotape receive a mysterious call informing them they will die in 7 days. However, if the affected person passes the tape to someone else, the curse will transfer to the new viewer. In this context, Rachel is a journalist who ends up watching the tape, as does her young son. This forces her to investigate the truth behind the curse and to meet Samara, the terrifying girl from the well who emerges from the television to kill her victims.
As mentioned, this film is based on a Japanese work from 1998 that tells the same story, which in turn is based on a story, supposedly real, from the fourteenth century. At the beginning of the 2000s, when videotapes were still making their last gasps, the existence of a tape that killed you just by watching it was the beginning of one of the most widespread urban legends. Furthermore, even though there were no viral platforms like TikTok back then, the video traveled around the world through the Internet and pages like “Minijuegos.” This led people (especially the younger ones) to start behaving as in the movie and passing the video along; something also promoted by the movie’s marketing campaign, which ensured its circulation.
The success of The Ring was overwhelming, becoming the most successful horror remake in history until It: Part 1 arrived in 2017 and took the title. The morbid fascination with the story, as well as the presence of a truly terrifying villain, were enough for this film to establish itself as one of the most popular in the horror genre, overshadowing, of course, its Japanese counterpart. The frenzy over Samara was such that it even increased alleged paranormal videos where ghosts resembling her were seen.
This success led to a direct sequel in 2005, even more terrifying if possible, and to a reboot-sequel in 2017, Rings. Even movies like Scary Movie 3 found room to parody the girl from the well. Therefore, now that Halloween is just around the corner, it’s always a great time to watch it again through SkyShowtime, as it is a film that has aged really well. The emphasis on intrigue over paranormal effects has preserved its story in a very dignified way.
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