The Grudge is a long-lasting Japanese horror franchise that has seen a wild amount of success with its American remakes, though some have certainly fared better than others.
Franchise creator and the director of the first Ju-On film, Takashi Shimizu, went on to direct the first American remake of his creation, The Grudge, in 2004 as well as the sequel in 2006. Shimizu created the Ju-On franchise in 1998, and had other Japanese installments as well. His popular franchise even inspired a crossover film with another Asian horror franchise, Ringu, which was the inspiration for The Ring movies. The crossover film, Sadako vs. Kayako, released in 2016.
The newest installment of the franchise released on January 3, 2020 from director Nicolas Pesce. All major horror franchises have their definitive high points and low points, and The Grudge is no different. Here are all The Grudge movies ranked, worst to best.
The Grudge 3 was the third American remake in the franchise, but was the first and only to be released direct-to-video. Shawnee Smith (Saw) starred as Dr. Sullivan, but even her formidable acting chops and penchant for success in horror films couldn't revive the film. The other two films in the American remake series set the bar high enough that The Grudge 3 seemed dull, lifeless, and lackluster in comparison, and brought nothing new that audiences hadn't already seen many times before.
Ju-On: The Grudge 2 was also written and directed by Shimizu, and was only released a year after his first Ju-On: The Grudge movie, adding to the rich franchise that he was already building with the overall universe and series. While it was a good effort, it strongly reiterated many of the points of the first and seemed half-baked. One year is a very quick turnaround, and because of this, it seemed like Shimizu got too focused on what worked with the first, therefore leaving the second repetitive and boring.
The newest installment in The Grudge franchise has gotten majorly negative reviews, and some of the worst that the franchise has experienced. However, Pesce attempted to bring something different to the franchise by invoking the curse as a viral transfer and showing how it can travel. Ultimately, the jump scares are repetitive and too consistent to have any real effect, but the film's R rating, which is only the second for the American remakes in the franchise, added some grotesque elements that redeemed it from being just another supernatural scary movie. The actors involved with the project, including horror veteran Lin Shaye (Insidious) redeemed it somewhat, but couldn't do enough to be completely successful.
Banking heavily off the success of the first American remake in 2004, The Grudge 2 was green-lit after its predecessor was in theaters only three days. A star-studded cast including Amber Tamblyn (Joan of Arcadia), Arielle Kebbel (The Vampire Diaries), and featured a stunning return performance from Sarah Michelle Gellar, who reprised the role of Karen Davis. While it was heavily criticized for having a non-linear story that was hard to follow, which has become a staple of the franchise, the atmosphere was right and Takashi Shimizu returned to direct, which brought authentic elements of Japanese horror yet again, but didn't create anything new or different.
Sometimes, the first in a series is the best, but in this case Ju-On: The Grudge falls slightly shy of first place. A strong effort, with genuinely good scares, jump scares that landed successfully, interesting characters, and a fun backstory added to the good points of this film. The creepy imagery was enough to sustain the whole franchise, and Shimizu didn't shy away from utilizing haunting specters up close and personal, including creepy ghost children, to drive his point home, but brought a confusing timeline that audiences couldn't always follow.
Shimizu wanted to direct the first American remake of The Grudge because he saw mistakes that he'd made with Ju-On: The Grudge and wanted a chance to correct them. The casting of Sarah Michelle Gellar as Karen in the height of her Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame was a smart decision, as she is known to carry a powerful lead heroine role on her shoulders with grace and poise, as she's done in the past with other horror films like I Know What You Did Last Summer. Shimizu redeemed himself here, and most of the errors that Ju-On had previously were corrected, giving audiences a rewarding, fun, and long-lasting fright in this installment of The Grudge.
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