Scream Factory Brings ‘The Ring Collection’ Home [4K Review]

Anthony Arrigo   |  

Apr 15, 2024

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Remakes are always a gamble but remaking a foreign film has a slightly easier barrier toward success because most Americans don’t want to read their movies. Reinterpreting director Hideo Nakata’s Ring (1998) would be no easy feat, however, as that film was not only highly acclaimed but immensely creepy and full of dread; a Big Studio jump-scare-a-minute re-do wasn’t going to cut it. Paramount brought together a strong creative team with the then-relatively new director Gore Verbinski, writer Ehren Kruger, and composer Hans Zimmer.

Led by Naomi Watts, The Ring (2002) deserves to be mentioned in any conversation about the greatest horror remakes of all time. It’s a slow-burn mystery that builds up to its most suspenseful moments, eschewing cheap scares, drowning the screen in green hues and a wet, dreary atmosphere. More than 20 years later it continues to hold up as effective and spooky… terms that unfortunately cannot be applied to either of its follow-ups. Success is a breeding ground for sequels but this is one series that should never have gone back to the well.

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After her niece, Katie (Amber Tamblyn), dies under mysterious circumstances journalist Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) sets out to uncover the reason why. Rachel interviews Becca (Rachael Bella), who was with Katie on the night she died, and learns of a videotape that is supposedly cursed. These claims are stoked when Rachel finds out all of Katie’s friends who also watched the tape died at the exact same time.

Rachel travels to the Shelter Mountain Inn and checks into the cabin where the group stayed, and there she finds the VHS tape. She watches it and immediately the phone rings, with a voice on the other end whispering “Seven days” before disconnecting. Once Rachel begins to experience her own supernatural, unexplainable encounters she enlists the aid of her ex-boyfriend, Noah (Martin Henderson), to discover the tape’s origins to protect to lives of her and their son, Aidan (David Dorfman), who has also seen the footage.

The reason The Ring works so well is because it presents a compelling mystery at the onset and never deviates from the case nor does it make things easy on Rachel. Everything she learns comes from doing the legwork; hard journalism. And with each of these nuggets of information comes a brief glimpse into what the images on that tape might mean. The otherworldly phenomena she experiences during her quest are chilling, and having the proverbial ticking time bomb of a seven-day window forces her to work overtime lest she wind up like her dead niece – and if there’s one thing everyone remembers from this film it’s that face in the closet. Assisting in the heavy dreadful lifting are Hans Zimmer’s spooky score and the unnerving sound design. Those little creaks whenever horror is just around the corner are effective.  

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Naomi Watts has been acting since 1986 but never achieved much acclaim until her breakthrough role in David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive (2001), and this film was her follow-up. Here, Watts again displays her strong acting by carrying the film almost entirely, since she’s in nearly every scene. She’s level-headed and quick-thinking, piecing together clues independently, while also selling her desperation in dealing with the supernatural. Martin Henderson does a fine job playing the type of disconnected, lackadaisical ex who’s practically forced into assisting his son’s mother. He’s also a shitty absentee father. David Dorfman is a real standout as Aidan, the young son who is more like a little man. He calls his mother “Rachel”, operates perfectly fine on his own, and has a calm, coarse little voice that belies his true age.

Kudos to FX legend Rick Baker’s ghostly special effects work, too. The faces of death are ghastly creations and the level of detail required to bring Samara’s waterlogged body to life is highly impressive. This is the kind of high-quality work that sticks with viewers long after the credits roll.

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Once The Ring became a major worldwide hit it seemed inevitable Paramount would commission a sequel. This time the studio did something commendable by bringing in Hideo Nakata, director of the original Japanese hit, to helm The Ring Two (2005)—and that’s where the credit ends. There are two things viewers should know about this film: Paramount micromanaged Nakata on set so frequently that he nearly walked off the film and went back to Japan. Instead, he stayed out of respect for the and crew but vowed never to make another American production, and he hasn’t. Secondly, reportedly Naomi Watts returned for the worst reason any actor can: contractual obligation. Knowing those two salient bits of trivia it can be easy to see why The Ring Two is a mess.

This feels like a lazy cash grab. Picking up from where the short film Rings (2005, included in the bonus features) left off the videotape has now become a viral sensation among teens. But after the first death, Rachel destroys it and the bulk of the film features a vengeful Samara (Kelly Stables) possessing Aidan. The male lead this time around is played by Simon Baker, who also starred in that year’s Land of the Dead from George A. Romero, and he’s as bland as wallpaper paste in both films. We get plenty of possession clichés until Rachel finally starts to investigate Samara’s origins somewhere past the hour mark of this two-hour feature.

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On the plus side, Rick Baker returns to handle the FX. On the negative side… well, just about everything else. I saw this once back when it came out and all I could remember is that awful CGI deer attack, which is a big problem when that’s the most memorable scene.

Paramount waited nearly a full decade before trying to relaunch the franchise with Rings (2017), a film shot and completed in 2015 but tinkered with, edited and re-edited, and placed on the shelf for two years before finally hitting theaters. Never a good sign. The film has one of the worst cold opens I’ve ever seen before delving into a plot that almost had me thinking it would be different and cool.

Gabriel (Johnny Galecki) is a college professor who is conducting an experiment on the cursed videotape with a group called the Sevens (as in, seven days before they die) where members have to get others to watch their copies before you-know-who pops out of a screen to kill them. Sounds novel enough, right? But then we wind up spending the rest of the film with Julia (Matilda Lutz) and her equally boring boyfriend, Holt (Alex Roe), as they try to uncover the new mystery of Samara’s birthright because Julia is now marked and she somehow added new images to the cursed video. The film is a drag. The story is rote. Whatever future plans they had for the series (which are clearly set up by the ending) are likely scuttled for good. We should all be grateful for that.

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The Ring has been given a 4K remaster from the original camera negative and the 1.85:1 2160p Dolby Vision/HDR image is superb. Green is a predominant hue throughout the film—a look achieved on set using diffusion—and that aesthetic is perfectly replicated here in this image approved by Verbinski. Seattle’s rainy, bleak environment is fittingly dour, full of clouds and shadows. Few bright colors are present but every shade on screen is richly saturated. Black levels are deep. Film grain is smooth and fine. Depth and clarity are both excellent.

The Ring Two contains only the theatrical cut on the 4K disc, while the unrated cut (which features 18 additional minutes) has been relegated to Blu-ray only. I opted for the unrated cut (maybe a mistake; more isn’t necessarily a good thing here) and the 1.85:1 1080p picture is free of blemishes and well-defined. The overall aesthetic is slightly processed and digital, and this is not an attractive feature by any measure, but the Blu-ray is likely authentic to the source. The 4K disc tightens up key areas though by no means is it a homerun over the Blu-ray. I’m not sure why Paramount, who supplied the masters, only gave Scream Factory the theatrical cut in 4K but this has been a recurring issue with Scream’s 4K titles and it’s frankly annoying.

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Rings features a new 4K master of the film and while it is technically sound the 1.85:1 2160p image looks too artificial to my eyes. Very digital. There is virtually no grain, definition is strong, and colors appear robust but black levels seemed a bit inconsistent.

Audio options are similar enough in presentation and consistency that this can be tackled in one paragraph. The Ring and its sequel feature English DTS-HD MA 2.0 and 5.1 tracks, while Rings has 2.0 and a 7.1 option. Dialogue is clear and understandable across the board. The sound design is immersive and unsettling. Hans Zimmer’s score for The Ring is wonderful and a couple of his protégés handle scoring duties for The Ring Two. Rings has a beefier low end and greater use of rear speakers during key moments. Subtitles are included on each film in English SDH.

THE RING Bonus Features:

“Ghost Girl Gone Global” (HD, 1:32:29) is a documentary that examines the phenomenon of the series, its main ghoul Samara, and the impact it has had on both audiences and the genre. There are lots of interviews with key players from both the Japanese and American productions.

“Don’t Watch This” (HD, 15:26) is a collection of deleted scenes. These all add to character and story depth but it makes sense why they were excised.

“Rings” (2005) is a short film (HD, 16:42)—that, yes, they also titled the third film—that bridges the gap between The Ring and The Ring Two, showcasing the viral sensation the cursed video has become among teens. Since The Ring Two opens directly from the ending of this story I would say it is crucial viewing if you’re watching these in order.

“The Origin of Terror” (SD, 3:58) is a brief discussion about the psychology of horror films.

“Cast and Filmmaker Interviews” (SD, 7:58) offers up some talking points with the main principals here.

A theatrical trailer (HD, 2:10) is also included.

THE RING TWO Bonus Features:

An audio commentary by film critics Emily Higgins and Billy Dunham is available only on the theatrical cut.

“Rings” is also included on this disc, too.

A series of deleted scenes (SD, 18:37) are available.

“Fear on Film: Special Effects” (SD, 5:45) looks at the creation of Samara’s design, with input from Rick Baker.

“Faces of Fear: The Phenomenon” (SD, 6:12) offers additional glimpses into Rick Baker’s iconic work on the series.

“Samara: From Eye to Icon” (SD, 5:48) focuses on the film’s main antagonist.

“The Power of Symbols” (SD, 5:20) is further discussion on the psychology and iconography of horror films.

“The Making of The Ring Two” (SD, 13:02) is a fairly standard EPK behind-the-scenes look.

A theatrical trailer (HD, 1:30) is available.

RINGS Bonus Features:

Deleted and extended scenes (HD, 18:35).

“Terror Comes Full Circle” (HD, 12:37) about the making of the film.

“Resurrecting the Dead: Bringing Samara Back” (HD, 9:19) covers the process by which actress Bonnie Morgan is turned into Samara.

“Scary Scenes” (HD, 6:35) features interviews with some of the cast members.

Special Features:

THE RING Special Features and Technical Specs:

• NEW 4K RESTORATION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE Supervised And Approved By Gore Verbinski
• DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• NEW “Ghost Girl Gone Global”
• “Don’t Watch This” – Collection Of Deleted Footage
• Rings – Short Film That Uncovers The Terrifying And Secret Connection Between The Ring And Its Sequel
• “The Origin Of Terror”
• Cast And Crew Interviews
• Theatrical Trailer

THE RING TWO Special Features and Technical Specs:

• NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE THEATRICAL VERSION FROM THE ORIGINAL CAMERA NEGATIVE
• DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• NEW Commentary With Film Critics Emily Higgins And Billy Dunham
• Unrated Version Of the Film
• Rings – Short Film That Uncovers The Terrifying And Secret Connection Between The Ring And Its Sequel
• Deleted Scenes
• “Fear Of Film: Special Effects”
• “Faces Of Fear: The Phenomenon”
• “Samara: From Eye Of Icon”
• “The Power Of Symbols”
• The Making Of The Ring Two
• Theatrical Trailer

RINGS Special Features and Technical Specs:

• NEW 4K MASTER OF THE FILM
• DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
• Deleted/Extended Scenes
• “Terror Comes Full Circle”
• “Resurrecting The Dead: Bringing Samara Back”
• “Scary Scenes”

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