25 years! A quarter of a century! That's how long Takashi Shimizu's horror franchise, "The Grudge" has been around. The "Ju-On Franchise" consists of thirteen films (so far), six novels, comics, a graphic novel, a TV series, a video games and other assorted merchandise!

For me, in 2004, I saw a preview for "The Grudge" and saw it was an American film & cast with a Japanese filmmaker. It didn't stand out that much to me, but before the film came out I saw copies of "Ju-On: The Grudge" at the video store and saw it was released in 2002-2003. This made me curious, so I rented it and I was amazed! Fast forward to October 2004, I saw the American version in theatres and though it was OK, it didn't hit me like the original one did. 

I loved how Takashi crafted the non-linear type story of how a domestic murder/suicide created a curse upon anyone who moved into the house where this tragedy occurred. This doesn't sound interesting but the way Shimizu crafts the story, it's always interesting, unnerving and yes at times scary! The interesting thing for me is in 2006, I only was aware of the 2002 Japanese feature, the American re-make in 2004 and its sequel in 2006! The franchise actually had two direct to video films that came out in 2000! The origins of the story date back to a couple of short films in 1998 (yes the same year the first "Ring" ("Ringu") film was released)! The 2002 film is considered the official first film in the franchise because it was the first one to receive a theatrical release. 

The four Japanese films that Takashi Shimizu directed are the ones you have to watch (they're the best of the franchise), the two American films he directed were not bad either. At least three of these you can find on streaming sites. If you love these films like I do however, you'll want to get a hold of the limited edition box set from Arrow Video (you'll need a region free Blu-Ray player though as these won't work in every player). 

We discussed this franchise in detail and you can listen by clicking here!