A great package of scares--and some lifted shots from Hitchcock classics

Rating: Null/10 (28 October 2002)

Contains Spoilers I have to admit that "The Ring" scared me. Plot holes and all it was very well shot with great directing, excellent camera shots, a disturbing mood, and above-average acting. Without discussing the plot in any detail I must say that I am surprised that of the reviews I read of this movie, not a single person noticed the several camera shots lifted from other movies, especially Hitchcock films. First, the scene where the boy's mother scans the neighboring apartment complex observing the various lives of her neighbors she visually moves from window to window observing the scenes inside several different apartments. This scene was directly taken from "Rear Window" and as a humorous nod to Hitchcock, one of the neighbors even had a broken leg and is confined to wheelchair, just like Jimmy Stewart was in "Rear Window." However in "The Ring" we see him from another neighbor's vantage point. Two other shots were clear references to "Vertigo." The sudden and unexpected suicide jump of Kim Novak into the San Francisco Bay is copied as the girl's mother suddenly, and unexpectedly jumps from the cliff in "The Ring." Also, when the video expert is in his room and the female lead decides to forgo the elevator and race up the stairs, the shot is also right out of "Vertigo" as Jimmy Stewart races up the stairs of the bell tower. The stairs wind around in a dizzying spiral and the camera is even positioned in the same spot for both shots. Another shot taken from Hitch was when the female lead is showering and her dirt is washing down the drain. The camera zooms in on the drain following the rinsed-off dirt as it disappears, exactly as Hitchcock did in "Psycho" during Janet Leigh's shower scene. Another shot lifted from "Psycho" was when the female lead approaches the video expert's chair from behind calling out his name towards the end of the movie. She touches his chair and it slowly turns around to reveal his face--exactly as it does at the end of "Psycho" when Vera Miles learns the truth about Norman's "mother." That many shots from Hitchcock movies does take away a bit from the originality of "The Ring", but a good shot is a good shot even if used more than once. Additionally, the scene where the fingernail is found in the walls of the well could not have been more clearly lifted from "Silence of the Lambs." While each movie had their own plot and reasons for each shot, it is interesting to note how blatantly some shots were stolen from the masters. Otherwise, I greatly enjoyed this movie and would recommend it to any who are tired of ridiculous attempts at horror such as "Scream," "I Know What You Did Last Summer," and "13 Ghosts."