Ju-On

(2003) **** 1/2

Ju-On: The curse of one who dies in the grip of a powerful rage.
It gathers and takes effect in the places where that person was alive. Those who encounter it die, and a new curse is born.

Hold on to your tights girls, this one's a creeper! I purposely got this to watch when the Husband was home because I knew loosely what the plot and scary kid thing were about. Of course, we ended up watching football (I know, I know, I can't help it!) Anyway, the crux of this means that I had to watch it by myself, at night, after the kids were in bed, on about the windiest night of the year. Once again the dog was useless company.

Again, not sure how many of the new folks have seen this so I don't want to give too much away. My plot synopsis will be brief as I don't want to spoil anything.

It all starts in the house. In the beginning we see a house where there is a brutal murder occurring. Referencing the quote above, the house now has a curse on it that affects not only anyone who enters the house, but also "takes effect in the places where that person was alive." Meaning this sucker can spread. The movie is then broken into "chapters " for each person that has entered the house and follows them to their demise.


My only problem with this movie is that the chapter format kind of confused me at times. The not going in chronological order was not the issue, it was when someone I already thought was dead turned up again and it was after the scene where I thought they had bought it.

But my issues were minimal because this movie uses supernatural scares in a way that is to be envied by the people who make movies like "The Messengers." Once the tension begins it does not let up. The little boy who is the signal of bad things to come is creeeeeppppyyyyyy. I initially thought he was the one doing the killings...the reality is much scarier. This is definitely a flick that will make me double check corners and turn lights on before I go into rooms for a little while. And isn't that what Horrorthon is all about?

Postscript: I had to up this 1/2 star today because I was thinking about this movie all day. I actually hesitated to do my 4yr olds "Monster Check" because I half expected to see a creepy blue boy peering out at me from the closet. Brrrrr.