Erb, Stephanie

The Ring (Full Screen Edition)

Disturbing images and a few good shocks don't stop The Ring from being a hash of half-baked ideas. It's the kind of frightfest you'll watch to set a chilling mood or spook your susceptible friends, but when you try to sort it out, this well-mounted American remake (of the 1998 Japanese hit Ringu, based on Koji Suzuki's popular novel) collapses into a heap of incoherent parts. The negligible plot follows a Seattle reporter (Naomi Watts) as she investigates the death of her niece, the victim of a mysterious videotape that, according to vague urban legend, causes the viewer's death seven days later. (Fear Dot Com borrowed the same idea while avoiding this film's lofty pretensions.) The reporter, her son, and her estranged boyfriend view the tape, and the film's countdown structure follows them into deepening layers of terror--all quite effective until the movie attempts to explain itself. At that you're better off shutting down your brain and letting the creepy visuals take over. --Jeff Shannon

Starry Night

Seven Girlfriends

With so many romantic comedies revolving around eternally adolescent men with self-centered philosophies and terminal commitment problems, it's kind of nice to see one of them take stock of himself. Tim Daly, a chef with unconventional methods (try his dishwasher fish), embarks on a quest through past loves with sincere questions about why things didn't work out. Boyish Daly is charming as the rogue romantic, and his tour through broken affairs gives some fine actresses comic-showcase scenes--Jamie Gertz, Laura Leighton, Elizabeth Peña, Mimi Rogers, and Katy Selverstone among them. Olivia d'Abo is his current flame, a would-be psychic restaurateur who sets out after him, and Melora Hardin is an old gal pal who just may be his best chance at a fresh start. This isn't quite the High Fidelity thing--Daly's quest is a well-meaning attempt at personal growth, not a sour tour of self-justification--but then this is hardly as ambitious or revealing. He doesn't learn anything that a little serious self-examination would reveal just as well, but that's beside the point. It's a warm and winning little comedy about growing up, letting go, and opening up, with deftly played comedy and generous performances. --Sean Axmaker

The Ring/The Ring Two (Back-To-Back)

October 22nd

Michael Pare Tate Donovan and Amanda Plummer star in this thriller that takes place over the course of one day. OCTOBER 22ND follows several people each of whom lives in quiet--or not so quiet--desperation. Their stories intertwine as the tension of the film builds resulting in a dramatic and violent catharsis.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLERS Rating: R UPC: 084296406982 Manufacturer No: 40698

The Ring - Collector's Set (Full Screen Edition)

Disturbing images and a few good shocks don't stop The Ring from being a hash of half-baked ideas. It's the kind of frightfest you'll watch to set a chilling mood or spook your susceptible friends, but when you try to sort it out, this well-mounted American remake (of the 1998 Japanese hit Ringu, based on Koji Suzuki's popular novel) collapses into a heap of incoherent parts. The negligible plot follows a Seattle reporter (Naomi Watts) as she investigates the death of her niece, the victim of a mysterious videotape that, according to vague urban legend, causes the viewer's death seven days later. (Fear Dot Com borrowed the same idea while avoiding this film's lofty pretensions.) The reporter, her son, and her estranged boyfriend view the tape, and the film's countdown structure follows them into deepening layers of terror--all quite effective until the movie attempts to explain itself. At that you're better off shutting down your brain and letting the creepy visuals take over. --Jeff Shannon

The Ring [Region 2]

Disturbing images and a few good shocks don't stop The Ring from being a hash of half-baked ideas. It's the kind of frightfest you'll watch to set a chilling mood or spook your susceptible friends, but when you try to sort it out, this well-mounted American remake (of the 1998 Japanese hit Ringu, based on Koji Suzuki's popular novel) collapses into a heap of incoherent parts. The negligible plot follows a Seattle reporter (Naomi Watts) as she investigates the death of her niece, the victim of a mysterious videotape that, according to vague urban legend, causes the viewer's death seven days later. (Fear Dot Com borrowed the same idea while avoiding this film's lofty pretensions.) The reporter, her son, and her estranged boyfriend view the tape, and the film's countdown structure follows them into deepening layers of terror--all quite effective until the movie attempts to explain itself. At that you're better off shutting down your brain and letting the creepy visuals take over. --Jeff Shannon

October 22

Not just another day. A wounded man calls the police from a pay phone. He frantically explains that a gunman has gone berserk at a coffee shop and is firing indiscriminately at anyone who moves. Inside, the madman Gary (Michael Pare) is shooting away as the SWAT team rushes in with guns raised. Earlier that morning, Denise (Amanda Plummer), a waitress at the coffee shop, serves each of the unwitting victims as booth by booth they are each being drawn by the strings of fate. On October 22, their lives cross and they are faced with their own mortality and, as the situation brews a killer, it also creates a hero.