RING (1998)  ***

Reviewed 2/22/01

A supernatural video seen by four teenagers results in all four dying a week later from undiagnosed causes.  After seeing the video herself, an investigating reporter (Nanako Matsushima) enlists the help of her psychic ex-husband (Hiroyuki Sanada), hoping to unravel the mystery in order to save herself from a similar fate before a week is up.  The setup is one big gimmick, yet this horror movie is enormously effective in eliciting scares.  Some of it is done cheaply, through the use of sudden shrill bursts of music that has the fingernails on chalkboard effect, but directors Hideo Nakata and Chisui Takagawa successfully convey fear through camera placement and truly sinister imagery.  The scene at a deep dank well, which, yes, the protagonists must enter, is particularly riveting.  The storytelling itself leaves something to be desired.  Whenever new information is needed to forward the plot, the psychic just suddenly channels something out of the blue.