The Bat's Belfry

Greetings and salutations fellow movie denizens,

I am Belfazaar Ashantison, your host for another romp through that magickal land of make believe... The movies. This month's movie I will be reviewing is 'The Ring'.

Billed as the 'best scary Movie since the "Sixth Sense"', this movie breezed through the theaters like a fresh breath... of skunk water. Granted there were some scary moments in the movie and even a couple of the old classic shock and rock techniques with a whole new graphics twist.

Movie: The Ring

Rated: PG-13

Run time: 1 hour 55 minutes

Starring: Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, Brian Cox, David Dorfman, Lindsay Frost, Amber Tamblyn, Rachel Bella, and Daveigh Chase

Co-Executive Producers: Neal Edelstein and J.C. Spink

Directed by: Gore Verbinski

Synopsis: This movie starts out with a couple of girls speaking of what seems to be another of the wondrous urban legends that we have all heard as kids... Except, this time there is a twist. One of the girls HAS seen the end results of what happens to the victims of this movie.

The story goes a little something like this. Ace news reporter Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) is called to attend the death of her niece. While outside she overhears the strange tale of 3 other teenagers who have all mysteriously died of watching the very same movie that her niece supposedly watched that ended her life. Curious, as any good reporter would be, she decides to investigate. Rachel finds the mysterious tape that everyone was whispering about and watches it. Just as the movie finishes the phone rings. A girl's voice on the other end of the line tells Rachel that she is going to die.

Rachel, now frightened and even more intrigued, tries to hunt for clues to this mystery in the film. She takes it to the archive center of her station and begins to slowly looking through the tape. Things begin to go from bad to worse there so she copies the tape and takes it to her friend and sometimes colleague, Noah (Martin Henderson). Noah, in turn, receives the same mysterious stranger informing him that he will die in one week's time.

Rachel delves into a world of mystery and hidden truths that leads her to find the body of a girl long since drowned but whose evil and sadistic nature lived on. Furthering her efforts is the fact that her innocent son has managed to view this death dealing video.

Critique: All in all, I really enjoyed this movie, both at the theater where I got to actually witness a whole gaggle of teenaged girls get up in a group hugging each other to leave the theater and NOT return (Fear is an amazing thing, especially when inspired by those around you...) to viewing it in my home with friends.

Bat's Belfry rating: 3 stars

That's it from the Bat's Belfry this month,

Vitae Dominae

Belfazaar Ashantison

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