Category Archives: Movie Reviews

I Saw The Ring: Not a Movie Review

I would really like to know what mad marketing genius came up with this one.  Let me tell you a story.

Once upon a time, in the year 2002, there were these crazy things called VHS tapes.  Before DVRs were a thing, people could use these devices to record and watch their favorite shows and movies directly from their televisions (which were much fatter in those times). 

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freeimages.com/NitinAle

A young lady was rearranging her VHS tapes late one summer night, trying to find the perfect one to cure her boredom.  An infomercial was playing (one about the Magic Bullet blender – her favorite), and during a commercial break, the girl heard a high-pitched noise that drew her attention to the screen.

Her television screen, once colorful with brightly flashing images, now reflected only one image against a backdrop of darkness – a ring of light. As she watched, the image changed, replaced by the black-and-white image of a woman with long, dark hair standing in front of a mirror.

As the woman smiled knowingly into the camera, the image changed again – and again and again and again. Dark, disturbing pictures flashed across the screen one after another. Soon after they started, the images were gone, replaced by the dark screen with its ring of light. The girl stared transfixed as a child’s voice was heard. “You will die in seven days.” Immediately, a new commercial, this one bright and happy, replaced the image, and the girl’s semi-hypnotic gaze was broken.

The girl didn’t know what to think. Was that real? Had she just imagined it? She hadn’t had much sleep lately, but she’d never hallucinated before. She wrote down what she had seen and attempted to go to sleep.

The next day she interrogated her parents and sister. Had they seen it? Anything like it? They hadn’t, and the girl began to worry that she was going crazy.

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When the seventh day arrived, she impatiently waited for the dark and the time she had seen the strange video.  The time came and went without incident, and the girl was able to have a good night’s sleep.

She forgot about the odd images for months, her attention focused on preparing for the magical world of college.

One night in October, her college friends asked the girl if she wanted to go see the new horror movie, The Ring.  The girl jumped at the chance.  She was always up for a horror movie.  It was a good one, but when twenty minutes or so had passed, something crazy happened…

I think you know where this story is going. The creepy video I (oh, I’m the girl in the story if you didn’t know) saw in the middle of the night – with absolutely ZERO INDICATION that it was for a movie – was the cursed video from The Ring.  Who does that?!

And I just want to be clear about one thing: IT WAS AWESOME.  I flipped out a little in the theater when I saw the video that had made me think I was going crazy that summer, but I was thrilled.  You know how Naomi Watts looked pretty freaked after she saw it the first time and got the phone call? That’s how I felt. I mean, I didn’t actually think I was going to die, but it was a pretty creepy feeling. And it made me appreciate the movie that much more.

I actually feel pretty special to have been one of the people to get side-swiped by the thing.

So. Anyone else out there have a fun, late-night viewing of the CURSED video? If I never find another person that saw it, too, then I’m just going to assume they’re all dead.  Like I said. I’m special.

It Begins

I am a horror fan.  If you’re reading this, I’m guessing you are, too.

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FreeImages.com/AnnaGrist

I started this blog because I love to write, and as the saying goes, write what you know.  I love scary movies, scary books, creepy history, horror survival video games, urban legends, cryptozoology, haunted houses, creepy crafts, and – most importantly (to me anyway) – Halloween.  I also collect anything with a skull on it and keep a skeleton in my backseat.  No, it’s not a statement on the importance of wearing seatbelts.  It just makes me smile.  And it gives me someone to talk to when I’m driving alone.

So, basically, I live and breathe horror. It’s what I love. It’s what I know.

I plan on posting at least twice a week to start. But who knows?  Mr. Muse could attack at any moment.  My topics will include:

Movie Reviews: Um, yeah.  It’s a horror blog.  What did you expect?

Halloween: So I’m a little obsessed with Halloween.  I plan for it all year long.  I’ll review local haunted houses, Halloween merchandise, special events, and any other Halloween-related topics that might pop up.

Lists: I’m pretty OCD (self-diagnosed), so lists are one of my favorite things. What kinds of lists, you may ask?  One day I might rank my favorite zombie movies and then post a list of my favorite creepy video game villains the next.

DIY Creepy Crafts:  I love being creative, and because my love of all things horror-related is pretty severe, I do a lot of creepy little crafts.  One of my biggest projects is a haunted dollhouse (that used to have its own blog – very short-lived).  I’ll post updates and pictures of the dollhouse as well as Halloween projects I’m working on.

Other Topics: I’ll also discuss creepy history, scary websites, video games, books, cryptozoology, urban legends, etc…  I get distracted easily, so I don’t want to limit myself to one subject.

I’m excited to get started.  I hope you enjoy my blog!