Rating summary

Movie		1.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Rings Blu-ray Movie Review

This "Ring" Doesn't Rule Them All.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 26, 2017

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.

Julia (Matilda Lutz) receives a late-night, frantic Skype call from her boyfriend Holt's (Alex Roe) account, but it's not him on the other end. Instead, it's a panicked girl named Skye (Aimee Teagarden) who is searching for Holt. Turns out Skye and Holt are involved in watching a deadly video that promises to kill the viewer in seven days. Julia tracks down Holt's college professor, Gabriel (Johnny Galecki), who recently purchased a VCR, and the tape in it, from the family of a deceased man who had two years prior succumb to Samara's curse. Julia, Holt, and Gabriel frantically try to sort out the truth before it's too late. Or something along those lines. The movie isn't interesting enough to really make the plot matter.

Rings travels down the basic franchise path, dealing with the video, the death mark that comes with watching it, and so on and so forth. In that way, it's what one expects of a Ring film. Of note, obviously, is that this movie takes place in the present, some 15 years since the U.S. remake, and technology has evolved beyond the analog VCR and the CRT TV, both of which contributed to the original's character and creepy factor, into the digital era. Things kick off with a VHS copy, but the story evolves into the digital realm of today, a natural progression and one the movie, to its credit, uses well, though not to its fullest extent, at least not until the end. But, generally speaking, the core remains largely the same. The film, of course, features the same static-y video and various bits of creepy imagery in conjunction with weird happenings, violent deaths, and so on and so forth and, really, it's all just...boring. The story, not so much the lack thereof but the convoluted nature thereof, suffocates the film's attempts at building lore and progressing the tale forward. Its inability to escape genre cliché -- jump scares and such -- cheapen the product. The completely, hopelessly empty characters, forgettable not even after the movie ends but from scene-to-scene, don't give the audience any reason to care. The movie is a complete chore to watch, its fleeting moments of acceptable entertainment all too brief in an otherwise unremarkable, forgettable even in-the-moment, film.

The movie is technically competent, at least insofar as the basics are concerned. It's adequately moody, its vomit-green filtering gives off a creepy vibe, but with everything in it so shallow and derivative, it's hard to care about baseline competency and some of the few little moments that actually work. In fact, the niftiest part of the movie comes right at the beginning when the Paramount logo is revealed to be on a screen on an airplane, a scene that turns into one of those classic throwaways that are "important" to the plot but seem tacked on to start the movie with a "bang." Ugh. Rings isn't even fun to write about. It's so formulaic and it's so hard to care. The cast at least does a commendable job of carrying the movie, finding enough "urgency" and "panic" and "mystery" to satisfy the core plot's requirements, but they play completely forgettable, poorly written figures who simply move the story forward. Insert any generic Horror fodder teen/young adult and the results would be identical. Even the venerable Vincent D'Onofrio can't save the movie in his limited third-act appearance, largely because he comes too late to care that there's actually a reason to look at the screen again.

Rings Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

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.

• Terror Comes Full Circle (1080p, 12:37): A look back at the original film, digital technology's role in this film, plot basics, the film's visual style, Samara's evolution, Javier Gutiérrez's direction, and more.
• Resurrecting the Dead: Bringing Samara Back (1080p, 9:19): A closer look at the character's return, including makeup and prosthetics and the physical performance.
• Scary Scenes (1080p, 6:35): The cast discusses reactions to Horror movies and this film's scariest scenes.
• Deleted/Extended/Alternate Scenes (1080p, 18:40 total runtime): Rick Baker Cameo, Holt and Julia Goodbye, Talk with Mom, Hardware Store, Julia's Webcam, Goodbye Mom, Julia Follows Gabriel, Holt's Vision, Motel Vision, Morphed Hands Nightmare, Julia's Father, Cicada Vision, Holt in Hallway, and Alternate Endings.

Rings Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.