Ring 2
Encyclopedia
directed by Hideo Nakata
, is the sequel
to the Japan
ese horror film
, Ring
.
Ring was originally a novel written by Koji Suzuki
; its sequel, Rasen
(aka Spiral
), was also adapted into a movie as the Ring movie's sequel. However, due to the poor response to Rasen, Ring 2 was made as a new sequel to Ring, not based on Suzuki's works, and thus ultimately ignores the story of Rasen.
), Sadako's uncle, who takes it on his boat and later casts it into the bottom of the ocean.
Mai Takano (Miki Nakatani), Ryuji Takayama's assistant, continues to search for answers in regards to his sudden death. She meets a reporter named Okazaki (Yūrei Yanagi
), while looking for Ryuji's ex-wife Reiko Asakawa (Nanako Matsushima
), who is investigating the cursed tape in Reiko's stead. Okazaki, still searching for a person who has actually seen the tape with their own eyes, tracks down and interviews a girl named Kanae Sawaguchi (Kyoko Fukada
). Although she has not yet seen the tape, she agrees to sell him a copy for ¥
20,000. Upon giving the tape to Okazaki, Kanae admits that she watched the tape and begs him to watch it to spare her life. However, Okazaki is too afraid to watch it.
Okazaki and Mai visit a mental hospital to see Masami Kurahashi (Hitomi Sato), a friend of Tomoko Oishi's who saw her killed. Masami is now mute and refuses to leave her room, due to the TV in the lounge area which she has developed an immense phobia of. While there, they meet a university classmate of Takayama's, Dr. Kawajiri (Fumiyo Kohinato), who is a prominent paranormal researcher and recognises that Sadako Yamamura's lingering hatred resides within the tape and can be transferred to people such as Masami. Determined to remove Sadako's spirit from within Masami, who has become imbued with psychic powers after watching the tape and can projects its images onto nearby TV sets, he arranges a risky experiment based on his theories involving energy transfer. The experiment requires Masami to attempt to drain Sadako's energy out of her by projecting the images onto a blank tape. Mai warns Masami not to participate, but the experiment goes ahead. Images begin to appear on the TV when there is a massive energy surge and Masami collapses in her chair. Mai takes the opportunity to grab the tape and destroy it.
Mai finally meets up with Reiko Asakawa and her son Yoichi (Rikiya Otaka
), both of whom have been in hiding out of fear from the authorities. Yoichi, having watched the tape, begins exhibiting psychic abilities and has become mute
. Meanwhile, Kanae Sawaguchi's body is discovered. While trying to erase the footage of Kanae's interview Okazaki finds that the tape won't erase, and the tape sticks, Kanae's face on the screen slowly turning into a ghostly hair-covered face like Sadako's. The grinning Kanae comes closer to the screen and Okazaki is seen to scream.
Despite trying to keep the Asakawas' whereabouts hidden, Mai informs the authorities after seeing Kanae's body, who close in on Reiko and Yoichi. At the police station, Mai utilizes her limited psychic abilities to tell Yoichi to flee. Yoichi regains his voice and alerts Reiko. They escape, but Reiko experiences a vision in which her late father appears. He tells her that "the child you carry with you isn't Yoichi anymore". Reiko is killed by a truck while experiencing the vision. The police arrive and Yoichi focuses his killing intent on one of the detectives for a moment, before Mai interrupts and whisks Yoichi away.
The next morning, Mai and Yoichi head for Izu, hoping for answers from Takaishi Yamamura. Dr. Kawajiri, who also experiments with spirit photography ("nensha"), arrives with equipment and is looking for Mai. Mai is taken to the River of Offering by Takaishi, and upon returning to the inn she and the doctor see a vision of Shizuko in a scene from the video tape, caused by Yoichi.
The next day, Dr. Kawajiri sets his equipment up next to a pool of fresh water which serves to sap Sadako's energies from Yoichi with Mai as a channeler. The process suddenly becomes chaotic when Yoichi's powers awaken. Takaishi, seeing Sadako's coffin in the pool, swims out towards it and is killed while yelling "Take me! End this with me!" The doctor commits suicide by electrocution under Sadako's influence, which also kills the nurse trying to stop him. Mai runs to Yoichi before blacking out.
Waking up, Mai and Yoichi find themselves in the well before both of them fall in. Ryuji appears, telling Yoichi and Mai to give him their fear in order to escape. Ryuji's grip leaves nensha marks on Yoichi's hand. The well's lid opens and the end of a rope is dropped into its depths. Mai climbs the well with Yoichi on her back when Sadako appears, wearing her reconstructed face like a mask, and climbs the wall, easily catching up to them. She asks them, "Why is it only you were saved?". Sadako then falls back into the well as Mai and Yoichi escape. Mai and Yoichi emerge from the well, only to find themselves in the pool used in the experiment. The bodies of Takaishi, the doctor, and the nurse float around the two as they reach the catwalk.
In the hospital, a nurse comes into a holding room to take Okazaki's picture before leaving. As the photo develops, her eyes widen in shock before looking back at the room. Behind Okazaki is the laughing ghost
of Kanae Sawaguchi.
Hideo Nakata
Hideo Nakata is a Japanese filmmaker.-Life and career:Nakata was born in Okayama, Japan. He is most familiar to Western audiences for his work on Japanese horror films such as Ring , Ring 2 and Dark Water...
, is the sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
, Ring
Ring (film)
is a 1998 Japanese horror film by Hideo Nakata, adapted from the novel Ring by Kōji Suzuki, which in turn draws on the Japanese folk tale Banchō Sarayashiki. The film stars Nanako Matsushima, Hiroyuki Sanada, and Rikiya Ōtaka as members of a divorced family...
.
Ring was originally a novel written by Koji Suzuki
Koji Suzuki
Koji Suzuki is a Japanese writer, who was born in Hamamatsu and currently lives in Tokyo. Suzuki is the author of the Ring cycle of novels, which has been adapted into a manga series. He has written several books on the subject of fatherhood...
; its sequel, Rasen
Rasen
Rasen is a sequel to the movie Ring. It is directed by Jōji Iida, and, as with the first movie, is based on the novel Spiral by Kōji Suzuki....
(aka Spiral
Spiral (novel)
is a 1995 Japanese novel, a part of author Koji Suzuki's Ring Cycle series. It is the second in the Ring Trilogy, and a film based on the book, Rasen was released in 1998. The English translation of the book was published by Vertical Press in the United States and by Harper Collins in Britain.-...
), was also adapted into a movie as the Ring movie's sequel. However, due to the poor response to Rasen, Ring 2 was made as a new sequel to Ring, not based on Suzuki's works, and thus ultimately ignores the story of Rasen.
Plot
While inspecting the corpse of Sadako Yamamura, the forensic experts note evidence that Sadako has died only a year or two ago, meaning that she was still alive in the sealed well for almost thirty years. They later reconstruct her body and send it to Takaishi Yamamura (Yoichi NumataYoichi Numata
Yoichi Numata was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in 27 films between 1949 and 2001.-Selected filmography:* The Princess Blade * Ring * Jigoku * Man in the Storm...
), Sadako's uncle, who takes it on his boat and later casts it into the bottom of the ocean.
Mai Takano (Miki Nakatani), Ryuji Takayama's assistant, continues to search for answers in regards to his sudden death. She meets a reporter named Okazaki (Yūrei Yanagi
Yûrei Yanagi
is a Japanese actor and tarento born 1963-04-08 in Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. Yanagi was originally a member of Takeshi Kitano's gundan. In 1990 he continued to work with Takeshi for the film Boiling Point. Afterwards, he appeared in over eight more films before meeting up with Takeshi...
), while looking for Ryuji's ex-wife Reiko Asakawa (Nanako Matsushima
Nanako Matsushima
is a Japanese actress and model. She is known outside Japan for her role in the horror film Ring. She was also a main character in A Story of Love, where she starred next to Hiroyuki Sanada, who also played Ryuji Takayama in Ring....
), who is investigating the cursed tape in Reiko's stead. Okazaki, still searching for a person who has actually seen the tape with their own eyes, tracks down and interviews a girl named Kanae Sawaguchi (Kyoko Fukada
Kyoko Fukada
is an actress and singer. In Japan, her name is sometimes contracted to the nickname Fukakyon. She won the award for Best Actress at the Yokohama Film Festival for Kamikaze Girls.- Career :...
). Although she has not yet seen the tape, she agrees to sell him a copy for ¥
Japanese yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
20,000. Upon giving the tape to Okazaki, Kanae admits that she watched the tape and begs him to watch it to spare her life. However, Okazaki is too afraid to watch it.
Okazaki and Mai visit a mental hospital to see Masami Kurahashi (Hitomi Sato), a friend of Tomoko Oishi's who saw her killed. Masami is now mute and refuses to leave her room, due to the TV in the lounge area which she has developed an immense phobia of. While there, they meet a university classmate of Takayama's, Dr. Kawajiri (Fumiyo Kohinato), who is a prominent paranormal researcher and recognises that Sadako Yamamura's lingering hatred resides within the tape and can be transferred to people such as Masami. Determined to remove Sadako's spirit from within Masami, who has become imbued with psychic powers after watching the tape and can projects its images onto nearby TV sets, he arranges a risky experiment based on his theories involving energy transfer. The experiment requires Masami to attempt to drain Sadako's energy out of her by projecting the images onto a blank tape. Mai warns Masami not to participate, but the experiment goes ahead. Images begin to appear on the TV when there is a massive energy surge and Masami collapses in her chair. Mai takes the opportunity to grab the tape and destroy it.
Mai finally meets up with Reiko Asakawa and her son Yoichi (Rikiya Otaka
Rikiya Otaka
is a Japanese actor.Aged 6 years, he was chosen out of many young boys to play the part of the little seven-year-old Yoichi Asakawa in Ringu. Today, he is the most credited and popular male character in the entire Ringu series...
), both of whom have been in hiding out of fear from the authorities. Yoichi, having watched the tape, begins exhibiting psychic abilities and has become mute
Muteness
Muteness or mutism is an inability to speak caused by a speech disorder. The term originates from the Latin word mutus, meaning "silent".-Causes:...
. Meanwhile, Kanae Sawaguchi's body is discovered. While trying to erase the footage of Kanae's interview Okazaki finds that the tape won't erase, and the tape sticks, Kanae's face on the screen slowly turning into a ghostly hair-covered face like Sadako's. The grinning Kanae comes closer to the screen and Okazaki is seen to scream.
Despite trying to keep the Asakawas' whereabouts hidden, Mai informs the authorities after seeing Kanae's body, who close in on Reiko and Yoichi. At the police station, Mai utilizes her limited psychic abilities to tell Yoichi to flee. Yoichi regains his voice and alerts Reiko. They escape, but Reiko experiences a vision in which her late father appears. He tells her that "the child you carry with you isn't Yoichi anymore". Reiko is killed by a truck while experiencing the vision. The police arrive and Yoichi focuses his killing intent on one of the detectives for a moment, before Mai interrupts and whisks Yoichi away.
The next morning, Mai and Yoichi head for Izu, hoping for answers from Takaishi Yamamura. Dr. Kawajiri, who also experiments with spirit photography ("nensha"), arrives with equipment and is looking for Mai. Mai is taken to the River of Offering by Takaishi, and upon returning to the inn she and the doctor see a vision of Shizuko in a scene from the video tape, caused by Yoichi.
The next day, Dr. Kawajiri sets his equipment up next to a pool of fresh water which serves to sap Sadako's energies from Yoichi with Mai as a channeler. The process suddenly becomes chaotic when Yoichi's powers awaken. Takaishi, seeing Sadako's coffin in the pool, swims out towards it and is killed while yelling "Take me! End this with me!" The doctor commits suicide by electrocution under Sadako's influence, which also kills the nurse trying to stop him. Mai runs to Yoichi before blacking out.
Waking up, Mai and Yoichi find themselves in the well before both of them fall in. Ryuji appears, telling Yoichi and Mai to give him their fear in order to escape. Ryuji's grip leaves nensha marks on Yoichi's hand. The well's lid opens and the end of a rope is dropped into its depths. Mai climbs the well with Yoichi on her back when Sadako appears, wearing her reconstructed face like a mask, and climbs the wall, easily catching up to them. She asks them, "Why is it only you were saved?". Sadako then falls back into the well as Mai and Yoichi escape. Mai and Yoichi emerge from the well, only to find themselves in the pool used in the experiment. The bodies of Takaishi, the doctor, and the nurse float around the two as they reach the catwalk.
In the hospital, a nurse comes into a holding room to take Okazaki's picture before leaving. As the photo develops, her eyes widen in shock before looking back at the room. Behind Okazaki is the laughing ghost
Yurei
are figures in Japanese folklore, analogous to Western legends of ghosts. The name consists of two kanji, 幽 , meaning "faint" or "dim" and 霊 , meaning "soul" or "spirit." Alternative names include 亡霊 meaning ruined or departed spirit, 死霊 meaning dead spirit, or the more encompassing 妖怪 or お化け...
of Kanae Sawaguchi.
Cast
- Miki Nakatani as Mai Takano
- Nanako MatsushimaNanako Matsushimais a Japanese actress and model. She is known outside Japan for her role in the horror film Ring. She was also a main character in A Story of Love, where she starred next to Hiroyuki Sanada, who also played Ryuji Takayama in Ring....
as Reiko Asakawa - Rikiya OtakaRikiya Otakais a Japanese actor.Aged 6 years, he was chosen out of many young boys to play the part of the little seven-year-old Yoichi Asakawa in Ringu. Today, he is the most credited and popular male character in the entire Ringu series...
as Yoichi Asakawa - Yūrei YanagiYûrei Yanagiis a Japanese actor and tarento born 1963-04-08 in Fuchū, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. Yanagi was originally a member of Takeshi Kitano's gundan. In 1990 he continued to work with Takeshi for the film Boiling Point. Afterwards, he appeared in over eight more films before meeting up with Takeshi...
Okazaki - Mebuki Tsuchida (child), Rie Enoo (adult) as Sadako Yamamura
- Masako as Shizuko Yamamura
- Yoichi NumataYoichi NumataYoichi Numata was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in 27 films between 1949 and 2001.-Selected filmography:* The Princess Blade * Ring * Jigoku * Man in the Storm...
as Takaishi Yamamura - Hiroyuki SanadaHiroyuki Sanadais a Japanese actor.-Life and career:Sanada was born in Tokyo. Originally aiming to be an action star, starting with shorinji kempo, he eventually took up Kyokushin kaikan Sanada began training at age 11 with actor and martial arts star Sonny Chiba's Japan Action Club where he developed good...
as Ryuji Takayama - Fumiyo Kohinata as Dr. Kawajiri
- Kyoko FukadaKyoko Fukadais an actress and singer. In Japan, her name is sometimes contracted to the nickname Fukakyon. She won the award for Best Actress at the Yokohama Film Festival for Kamikaze Girls.- Career :...
as Kanae Sawaguchi - Hitomi Sato as Masami Kurahashi