The Grudge 3

Plot

Jake (the only survivor from the second film) is under the care of Dr. Sullivan in an asylum. He is locked in his room following several escape attempts and is attacked by Kayako. The attack is seen on security cameras, although Kayako cannot be seen, and Jake is dead by the time Dr. Sullivan arrives with a security officer. News of the incident reaches a young woman in Tokyo, Naoko, who is the sister of Kayako. Believing that her sister is responsible, she travels to Chicago.

The apartment building where Jake lived is under renovation. Of the few residents who remain, some glimpse Toshio. One is drowned by Takeo Saeki and is never again seen. Dr. Sullivan, while investigating Jake's death, speaks with residents and finds that others have seen the little boy of whom Jake spoke. Dr.Sullivan digged more into the information and was killed by Kayako's ghost.

Naoko moves in as attacks continue against the residents and anyone associated with them. She tells the landlord's family that the curse now resides in the apartment and tries to convince them to participate in an exorcism. The landlord's sister, Lisa, refuses to cooperate but reconsiders when she realizes that her brother, Max, is possessed by the spirit of Takeo Saeki, the evil husband of Kayako and the source of the curse. Naoko warns that the ceremony must not be interrupted and tells Rose that she must drink Kayako's blood. Lisa disallows this. Takeo, as Max, realizes what Naoko is attempting and attacks and kills her. Lisa is chased by Kayako until, just as Kayako is about to kill Lisa, Rose drinks Kayako's blood which causes her curse to disappear.

Max returns to his senses and sobs over what he has done, but Naoko's murder has begun a new curse. Her ghost attacks and kills him. The film ends with Kayako shown to be in possession of Rose.

Cast

Production

The Grudge 3 was announced at Comic Con 2008. Kayako and Toshio had to be recast, as Takako Fuji and Ohga Tanaka passed on the roles. The film's budget was reported as approximately US$5 million.

Release

The DVD release was originally scheduled for March 24, 2009, but was delayed until May 12, 2009, due to the Blu-ray release of the first film. It was issued in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen with an English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track. Two featurettes appear: "Tokyagoaria" documents how the Bulgarian location was made to look like Tokyo and Chicago, and "The Curse Continues" shows how the film ties into the previous two. Three deleted scenes also are included.

Its reported sales of 2,271,177 DVD units (approximately US$38,610,009 in sales) recouped its $5,000,000 budget. In the United Kingdom, the film's television premiere was broadcast in High Definition on Syfy Channel on Friday, 22 January 2010 at 9.40 pm. In Mexico, the film received a limited theatrical release on June 25, 2010, and a nationwide release on August 6.

Reception

Critical reaction to The Grudge 3 was generally mixed to negative. Bloody Disgusting awarded the film two and a half skulls feeling it lackluster and saying "watching The Grudge 3 is like eating the generic brand of your favorite cereal; you can try to tell yourself all day that its just as good as the real thing, but inside, deep inside, you know it tastes different." Comingsoon.net found the film "dull" and complained the even the ending offered no answers. Cinefantastique Online slammed the film calling it "such a dismally spiritless affair that it almost seems deliberately designed to make the disappointing THE GRUDGE 2 look good by comparison."

Reboot

On June 6, 2017, it was announced that Nicolas Pesce would direct the next film in the series. Rather than be a direct sequel, the film will serve as a reboot. It is unknown if the film will retain the characters of Kayako and Toshio.