The Grudge 3 Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: Kayako and crew have set up residence in the Chicago apartment complex, from the previous film, and continue their rampage as Kayako's sister attempts to end the curse at last.

Review: This truly is the oddball of the franchise even more so than "Ju-on: The Curse 2," because not only does it not follow the fragmented story telling style, but it's the only entry to completely have the setting in the USA. Rather than trying to find its place in this franchise, this movie just follows a typical horror film's format and makes little sense in the process. It all wreaks of a cheap cash-in, and this is the kind of shit people hate about Hollywood. Anyway, the story picks up where "The Grudge 2" left off with the Jake kid being attacked by Kayako and somehow surviving and being put in a mental hospital; he is then quickly dispatched of by Kayako which makes you wonder why he was even allowed to live in the first place. For some reason Kayako and crew have ditched Japan to permanently haunt this apartment building in Chicago. An immediate contrivance is the fact that we are introduced to Kayako's sister, Naoko, who somehow knows about Jake's death. This is especially stupid because why would anyone make the connection, and there is just some throwaway line about "someone" trying to shame Naoko. So this "someone" happens to know that not only is Kayako a ghost killing people, but knows Naoko is the sister? Who the hell is this mystery person?! Naoko is surprisingly the most interesting character as she goes to the USA and attempts to exorcise Kayako once and for all. The other characters are just some family that takes care of the apartment building, a few neighbors, and Jake's psychiatrist. I was waiting until this installment to bring up something very important about this franchise: Kayako has always been wonderfully portrayed by Takako Fuji and she has been replaced this time around. Although the new actress is okay, you feel the emptiness to the scares without Ms. Fuji's presence to carry the film; it's stupid too because we see Ms. Fuji as Kayako in flashbacks of the Saeki murders. Toshio's actor is often replaced in all the entries, but he looks especially pitiful here which exasperates how noticeable the replacements were. There aren't many scary scenes and, in fact, there are quite a few laughable moments such as when we see a giant CGI Kayako face. On the other hand, there were a few interesting ideas, if not done to the best of their ability, such as Kayako coming out of a painting. The acting actually did feel better than the last movie, which is sad, even from the little girl, Rose, who I thought would be super annoying but wasn't too bad. By the end of the film, Naoko does manage to exorcise the Saeki crew but at a cost since the main dude kills Naoko when he's possessed by Takeo. This part pissed me off because no one tried to help Naoko...they just sat back and let her die. But apparently the curse has been spread to Naoko since we see her come back as a new ghost. I really don't mind this approach because it could have opened up possibilities for some future entry, but then they ruin what little momentum they had by still showing Kayako in that fucking beloved final zinger! Eh, this is a mixed bag for me because I do hate so much about this film, but for the most part it is just a mediocre waste. It's nowhere near as bad as you may think, but definitely not good. It was direct to DVD so I suppose I can forgive most of its flaws because its budget was low. I guess give this one a view for closure if you've seen all the other films, but understand this is probably the worst in the franchise since "Ju-on: The Curse 2" had its own set of problems but was still more enjoyable. Well, this is the end of the road thus far, but there is supposedly another entry coming at some point so look out!

Notable Moment: When Jake's psychiatrist is attacked by Kayako at the mental hospital. Kayako's sudden appearance is startling, and they made her appear somewhat scary in bright lights which was impressive.

Final Rating: 5/10