What did we learn from The Grudge?

[gammer]

...that even dead people can hold Grudges...murderous, terrorizing, abusive grudges that only effect people that enter their domain. This includes complete strangers who never knew the deceased or had anything to do with their deaths.

[JoshWay]

-That strange, bluish Japanese children opening their mouths is apparently considered very frightening by someone.
-That confusion and apathy can coexist.
-That directing the same movie twice will not improve it.

[Bob]

I learned the following:

Never leave a hit TV show to make horror movies.
Bill Pullman and Bill Paxton are the same person.
It does not take much to hold a grudge and doom a house forever.   Imagine if all the crime victims in the US held grudges so easily.
Grudge ghosts like cats and are not dog-grudge-ghosts.
Only one person per apartment complex is the norm in Japan.

[Steve-O]

-That directing the same movie twice will not improve it.

Three times, actually.  But same diff: the first attempt was by far the best.

[PsypherPunk]

Three times, actually.  But same diff: the first attempt was by far the best.

Isn't it six now? Ju-On: The Curse, Ju-On: The Curse 2, Ju-On: The Grudge, Ju-On: The Grudge 2, The Grudge and now The Grudge 2 (ignoring Katsumi and 4444444444 which are also rather similar).

Maybe that's what we can learn: if it ain't broke, another five times should do it.

[Steve-O]

Isn't it six now? Ju-On: The Curse, Ju-On: The Curse 2, Ju-On: The Grudge, Ju-On: The Grudge 2, The Grudge and now The Grudge 2 (ignoring Katsumi and 4444444444 which are also rather similar).

True enough.  I was assuming that the three 2's were basically copies of each other as well.  But now that I think about it, the sequels weren't exactly bold new directions for the series, either.

[PsypherPunk]

But now that I think about it, the sequels weren't exactly bold new directions for the series, either.

I remember reading a quote from Takashi Shimizu saying that they couldn't come up with a good way to kill 'the grudge' in the American sequel. So they didn't. Yep, couldn't come up with a decent idea so they did the same thing again. Go, Grudge!

[GirlInGoldBoots]

Here's what I learned:

Architecture students are wusses.

In Japanese supermarkets, it?s common practice to tear into food items before you purchase them.

Hair is evil . . . for some reason.

Only poorly applied masking tape can stop . . . The Grudge!

[estwald]

I learned that Bill Pullman is not a morning person.

I learned that Japanese realtors may not alert you to corpses in the bathroom.

I learned that even in a house with garbage all over the floor, I should still take off my shoes.

I learned that keeping your head low is a good strategy if you're embarassed about not having a jaw.

And I learned that Mike's going to keep using that Deacon's hat line until it gets a laugh.

[starfighter]

    I learned that if you watch a movie for the third time that you found boring the first time you saw it in the theater...it's still boring.  The Grudge goes on my personal list as the "Monster-a-go-go" of Rifftrax.
    But I did laugh out loud when Mike called Kevin on the Fibber McGee's closet joke for a really out-dated allusion. But it's still a nice substitution for the standard "out of the closet" modern reference choice.

[6079SmithW]

That there is a point at which a movie becomes so pointlessly boring and artless that I become angry and wish violence upon those responsible. That pale children aren't all that frightening, really. That there is a level of boring that even rifftrax won't alleviate. And that Star Wars 1 was better than something, somewhere (hey, at least Star Wars had a bunch of different stupid things going on.)

    I learned that if you watch a movie for the third time that you found boring the first time you saw it in the theater...it's still boring.  The Grudge goes on my personal list as the "Monster-a-go-go" of Rifftrax.
    But I did laugh out loud when Mike called Kevin on the Fibber McGee's closet joke for a really out-dated allusion. But it's still a nice substitution for the standard "out of the closet" modern reference choice.

Am I the only one who caught the Fibber McGee reference by way of NewsRadio?

And now that I think of it, what was with all of the Seinfeld references?

[mrbasehart]

I learned that if you want to survive the Grudge, you have to move faster than a three-toed sloth.

[King Rygar]

I learned to trust my instincts, which were to totally ignore the countless people who told me this was a GREAT movie and demanded I should see it. I did not, and will never again.

[Cibernético II]

And I learned that Mike's going to keep using that Deacon's hat line until it gets a laugh.

I laughed, every time.

We like it very much.

[mrbasehart]

I learned to trust my instincts, which were to totally ignore the countless people who told me this was a GREAT movie and demanded I should see it. I did not, and will never again.

Had you seen the movie before this Rifftrax? Because I gotta say, that playing the Rifftrax with the movie is a totally different experience than just watching the movie alone (I know, I'm stating the obvious).  The Grudge succeeds as a horror movie through its use of atmosphere and suspense, which the guys completely - and hilariously - destroy.