5 | / 10 |
Users | 2.5 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 2.9 |
Julia becomes worried about her boyfriend, Holt, when he explores the dark urban legend of a mysterious video said to kill the watcher seven days after viewing. She sacrifices herself to save her boyfriend and in doing so makes a horrifying discovery: there is a "movie within the movie" that no one has ever seen before.
Starring: Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, Alex Roe, Johnny Galecki, Aimee Teegarden, Bonnie MorganHorror | 100% |
Supernatural | 32% |
Mystery | 22% |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
French: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
UV digital copy
DVD copy
Slipcover in original pressing
Region free
Movie | 1.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
Only by the saving graces of acceptable production design, a few decent scares, and a bit of franchise lore does Rings barely scrape by as a full theatrical product. The film's majority is more reflective of a poorly conceived direct-to-video cash-in, the kind that invariably releases a decade or two after the "original," in this case a remake of the original Japanese film, both of which have been well-received, withstood the test of time, and both maintained and expanded the franchise's fan base over the years. Rings might dare to explore the world in a little more depth and detail, but the film proper falls terribly, hopelessly flat, suffering through a barrage of problems that, even despite a few good moments, drown the movie into submission early and largely prevent the average viewer, perhaps even the most ardent franchise aficionado, from enjoying either the film's basic plot maneuverings or its exploration of the larger Ring world around it.
Bad advice...doubly so when it comes to this movie.
Rings does look terrific on Blu-ray. Even as the movie was digitally photographed, it nearly passes for film texture and quality. Noise often takes on a grain-like appearance, adding a pleasing textural overlay to the image. It's never spiky or clumpy. Detailing is excellent. The image is clear and robust but never digital-flat or smooth. Skin textures are intimately complex. Environments, particularly many of the rougher, worn, and "scary" areas, are rich in textural quality and add a sharp, frightening visual style to the movie. There are no smudgy edges or poorly defined elements; the entire thing looks great. Colors are often drab, green-filtered and favoring a vomit-toned color palette. Several scenes offer a reprieve where better lighting offers a more neutral palette, but be prepared for, essentially, 100 or so minutes of drab, unhealthy (but seemingly accurate to filmmaker intent) greens. Black levels hold very deep. Flesh tones appear accurate under the movie's visual stylings. No encode or source flaws are readily apparent. This is a top-notch new release presentation from Paramount.
Rings' DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 lossless soundtrack is exemplary. The track makes excellent use of the entire configuration for both full-stage saturation and speaker- and location-specific sound details. Rattle and rumble inside the plane at the beginning, capped off by some chaotic barrages, set the tone. Rattles, clanks, crashes, thuds, slams, pounds and other Horror-friendly sound effects are regular visitors to the listening area, and the track's ability to pinpoint them or mass-introduce them as necessary, all while maintaining both expert, nuanced clarity and thunderous low-end support, makes each moment a serious sonic treat. The track is never shy about stretching the stage, pushing width and depth to their limits and working the subwoofer through a healthy range of low-end support detail. Music is clear and refined, nicely spaced and immersive. Ambient effects, particularly falling rain, play with natural spacing and immersion. Dialogue is clear and well prioritized with a firm front-center positioning. The only minor gripe comes in the way of very lightly muddled and shallow dialogue accompanying a couple of lines early on, but such is hardly worth numerically knocking an otherwise reference soundtrack.
Rings contains a few featurettes and deleted/extended/alternate scenes. A DVD copy of the film and a
voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy are included with purchase.
Rings is a completely derivative, forgettable, dull, insert-any-negative-adjective-here movie. It's the sort of movie that most will forget by the time they stand up and features some of the most disposable characters ever seen in a mainline Horror film. It's just a total waste of time and effort. For those who do enjoy the movie, or want to give it a spin, Paramount's Blu-ray is excellent. Video is top-tier and audio is of reference quality. A few supplements are tossed in as well. Skip it.
2005
2014
2016
1973
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2018
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