|
|
 |
The Ring
Director: Gore Verbinski (2002)
Distributor: United
International Pictures (UK) Ltd. Certificate: 15
|
|
Enter
the dead girl’s aunt Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts), a hard-nosed reporter who at
first dismisses the legend of the ‘death tape’. However, Rachel is drawn in
to the mystery when she discovers that each one of a small group ~ including her
niece ~ died one week after seeing the tape.
|
|
Rachel of course watches the tape as, to her horror, does her young son Aidan (David Dorfman) ~ along with everyone else in the cinema! The tape consists of a strange mix of images, some disturbing and some of which appear to be premonitions. The clock then starts ticking as Rachel sets out to solve the puzzle and, presumably, save the lives of herself and her son. Oh yes, and along the way Rachel’s ex is drawn in. He also watches the tape and becomes caught up in the countdown to doom. |
As the days are ticked off on the screen, Rachel discovers more and more about the tape and the images begin to make some sort of sense (though there are some gaping holes in the plot). Without giving the end of the film away ~ including the obligatory twist ~ the tape somehow has its origin in the death of a little girl on an island in the not too distant past. Yet how the images got onto tape, and just why apparent random vengeance is exacted upon anyone who watches it is not explained.
The Ring is an OK thriller that is not quite a horror film and certainly not the unsavoury gore-fest that the recent Final Destination 2 proved to be. It is quite engrossing until you try and fit the pieces together and at that point the film fails. Like most urban legends, there is little or no real substance to it.
THROUGH THE LENS OF CHRISTIAN FAITH
Some key themes: The reality of evil; fear of the unknown.
There will surely be those who say that Christians should not watch films like The Ring because they are unwholesome and relate to disturbing subject matter (e.g. death and the supernatural). If that is you, then fine. Every person can make their choice about what they watch. But as tens of thousands ~ and sometimes millions ~ of people do watch such films, it is important that some Christian comment is brought to bear on the issues raised. After all, ‘thou shalt not watch . . .’ is a commandment doomed to fail, human nature being as it is.
Perhaps one reason why films like this are so popular is because evil is often caricatured. Usually there are clear-cut ‘goodies’ and ‘baddies’ and the dark forces are plain to see. In that sense evil can be kept at arms length since it is visible and obvious. Nevertheless, we can still get a fright because even the most absurd horror film sets off within us a tremor of recognition in relation to two things: the reality of evil and fear of the unknown.
Evil is present in the world. No matter what your slant on evil might be ~ e.g. a spiritual presence, or an impersonal life-diminishing force ~ its reality is impossible to deny. We have only to look around at our society and our world to remove any doubts that we might have. Coupled with that is the sense of powerlessness that can sometimes be felt when evil things appear to carry on unchecked. It is easy to end up feeling at the mercy of things beyond our knowledge and understanding and to locate the reasons with unseen malevolent forces.
The counterbalance to that feeling of helplessness and fear is to be found through a living faith in God. For Christians, the presence of evil in the world is not denied nor its consequences underplayed. It is something to be confronted and challenged wherever it is found ~ through words and actions as well as through prayer. But the root cause of much of the world’s evil does not need a mysterious explanation. Everyday words like greed and selfishness will do nicely.
We do not need to resort supernatural excuses for bad things that people do to each other. That is not to deny the existence of a spiritual realm beyond that which we can see. But we are not at the mercy of unseen forces in the way that The Ring and films like it suggest. Why? Because when God became human in Jesus Christ, the ultimate defeat of evil was achieved. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead means that even the power of death has been overcome. For those reasons, our future is safe in God’s hands. What is required from us is an exercise of faith and trust in a God who loves us, who wants the very best for us, and in whose hands we are secure.
Have your say on the discussion forum....
· Have you seen The Ring? If so, let’s hear your views.
· Should Christians watch films with supernatural themes? What do you think?
To discuss this further why not leave a message of the discussion forum.
