It’s
human-to-human transmission rate is minimal, but the site of Kayako Saeki’s
violent angry death is 100% infectious. The death rate is nearly as high. It is
time to go back to Tokyo circa 2004, where it all started for the American
remake series. Instead of rebooting, the series branches off in a separate,
simultaneous, but not so radically different direction in Nicolas Pesce’s The Grudge, which releases today on DVD.
Flashback
to 2004: Fiona Landers is an expat social worker in Japan, who pays an
inspection visit to the house of horrors that started it all. She subsequently
returns home, taking Kayako and her grudge with her. Soon, tragedy strikes the
Landers family, as evil become deeply rooted in their home. That means Saeki is
quite an efficient multi-tasker, since she was simultaneously tormenting Sarah
Michelle Gellar in The Grudge (2004).
For
obvious reasons, the Landers House quickly develops an evil reputation. Det.
Goodman still refuses to step foot inside it, which seems rather strange to his
new partner, Det. Muldoon, since he ostensibly investigated the multiple
homicides that occurred there. It wasn’t just the Landers who met untimely
deaths. The realtors handling the sale of the property, Peter and pregnant Nina
Spencer, met similar fates.
As
is usually the case in horror movies, Muldoon relocated to exurban Pennsylvania
hoping to find a safer, more stable environment to raise her son Burke after
her husband’s devastating death from cancer. Needless to say, those plans go
out the window once she enters the Landers house. From there on, she is in for
the full Grudge treatment.
The
Grudge 2020
is a respectable American installment in the franchise, but Pesce’s reputation
as the indie auteur who helmed The Eyes of My Mother and Piercing will
raise many fans expectations well above what the film delivers. We’ve seen just
about all of it before, but Pesce does it with a surprisingly prestigious cast.
There are two Oscar nominees in Grudge 2020: Demian Bichir, who is terrific
as the devout but world-weary Goodman and Jacki Weaver, who helps humanize the
thankless role of Lorna Moody, an assisted suicide activist, who pays an
ill-fated visit to the current owners of the Landers house.
Andrea
Riseborough is also quite strong as Muldoon, while John Cho and Betty Gilpin do
as well as anyone could ask as the poor Spencers. Lin Shaye adds genre cred as
Faith Matheson, the creepy, dementia-addled half of the couple who currently
own the house. However, some of the best genre work comes from veteran
character actor William Sadler, playing Goodman’s institutionalized ex-partner to
the hilt.
Frankly,
it is hard to guess a viewer’s response, if they are neither a fan of Pesce or
the Grudge franchise. Pesce does some competent work-for-hire with possibly
the best cast assembled for the American remake franchise. Pro-lifers might
even find the film rather refreshing, since the Spencers chose life, under
challenging circumstances, until Saeki chooses death for them, which is
portrayed as a horrible thing to have happen. Not bad, but not outstanding, The
Grudge is now available on DVD and VOD.
