Ring, The

THE RING —*** 1/2 — Naomi Watts, Martin Henderson, David Dorfman, Brian Cox, Jane Alexander, Lindsay Frost; rated PG-13 (profanity, brief violence, brief gore).

Don't let the pop-culture references, unexpected humor and the killer-on-the-phone scare scene at the beginning fool you; "The Ring" is no mere "Scream" knock-off.

Nor should the film be confused with "The Blair Witch Project," "The Others" or "feardotcom" — although it shares things in common with all three films. (While "The Ring" and "feardotcom" do feature similar plots, evidence suggests that "feardotcom" is the imitator.)

"The Ring" is one of creepiest, scariest movies to come along in a long, long time, easily rivaling "Blair Witch" or "The Others." And that it generates its frights without being needlessly violent or gory makes it a refreshing entry in the genre. (However, be warned that the film does contain some grotesque and disturbing imagery, and it's definitely too intense for young ones.)

This suspense/horror tale is a remake of a Japanese cult hit (1998's "Ringu") about a supposedly cursed videotape that brings death to any who watches it. This version stars Australian actress Naomi Watts as Rachel Keller, a Seattle journalist investigating the mysterious death of her teenage niece.

Rachel discovers that the teen and three other now-dead students may have watched a videotape that contains about a minutes's worth of what appear to be black-and-white nightmare images. Once Rachel tracks down the tape, she watches it. Moments later, she receives a phone call, with the voice of a child saying "seven days," which apparently means that she has only that long to live.

Obviously, Rachel is freaked out, and she takes the tape to her ex-boyfriend, Noah (Martin Henderson), who ignores the warning, watches the tape and also receives an ominous phone-call warning. So it appears the two of them have only a week to solve the tape's mysteries.

While it does contain a couple of serious missteps (such as the old child-in-danger ploy), "The Ring" is well-paced and consistently enthralling. (It also appears to be over after 90 minutes, but then moves forward with one final twist that makes it even more effective.)

Give credit to director Gore Verbinski, who tones down his visual style a notch, and who uses his customary camera gimmicks only when he deems them necessary. But the film is a solid group effort, from Ehren Kruger's clever script to the terrific cast.

Watts, who was impressive in "Mulholland Drive," again delivers a fine performance, and Henderson is quite likable. Also of note is a spooky supporting turn by young David Dorfman as Rachel's son.

"The Ring" is rated PG-13 for scattered use of strong profanity, brief violence (violence against women and animal violence) and brief gore, as well as several disturbing images. Running time: 115 minutes.

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