Ring 2
Movie, 1999, Japan, Set in A week later
Ring 2 is #2 of 5 in release order and #2 of 5 in chronological order in the The Ring.
The story
While investigating the horrifying death of her boyfriend, Mai Takano learns about a videotape haunted by the spirit of a disturbing girl named Sadako, which kills anyone who watches it exactly one week later. When her boyfriend’s son, Yoichi, starts to develop the same psychic abilities as Sadako, Takano must find a way to keep the boy and herself from becoming the next victims.
Ring 2 recap
Ring 2 (1999) picks up days after Ring as Mai Takano, the late Ryūji's student, searches for Reiko and her son while police investigate the deaths. Hideo Nakata returns to direct this sequel, which replaces the earlier follow-up Spiral. Sadako's remains are recovered and her uncle Takashi (Yoichi Numata) buries them at sea. Mai (Miki Nakatani) teams up with Okazaki (Yūrei Yanagi), a reporter colleague of Reiko's, who hides a copy of the tape he got from a schoolgirl, Kanae Sawaguchi (Kyoko Fukada), instead of watching it to save her. Tomoko's friend Masami (Hitomi Satō), who saw her die, sits silent in a hospital, where Dr. Kawajiri (Fumiyo Kohinata) tries to draw the psychic energy out of her onto blank tape and only produces Sadako's images. Mai finds Reiko (Nanako Matsushima) and Yōichi (Rikiya Otaka), who has stopped speaking and whose powers are growing. It follows Ring directly.
Ring 2 ending explained
Ring 2 ends at the Yamamura inn on Ōshima, where Kawajiri tries to drain Sadako's rage from Yōichi into a pool of water, with Mai as the channel. Reiko has already been killed by a truck while fleeing the police with Yōichi. The experiment goes wrong: Sadako's presence fills the pool, Takashi jumps in and Kawajiri dies with his equipment. Mai and Yōichi find themselves in the well, Ryūji's spirit helps them climb out, and Sadako asks why only they were saved. They emerge free of fear, while the institutionalized Okazaki is photographed with Kanae's ghost laughing behind him.
Post-credits scenes
No. Ring 2 has no mid- or post-credits scene.
Where to watch Ring 2
Ring 2 is streaming on Philo, Fandor, Retrocrush, AsianCrush, Cineverse, and Midnight Pulp in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 5.8/10, Rotten Tomatoes 7%
Where it fits
What to watch before Ring 2
Ring (1998), which Ring 2 (1999) continues.
Cast
- Miki Nakatani as Mai Takano
- Hitomi Sato as Masami Kurahashi
- Kyoko Fukada as Kanae Sawaguchi
- Fumiyo Kohinata as Dr. Kawajiri
- Kenjirou Ishimaru as Detective Omuta
- Yûrei Yanagi as Okazaki
- Rikiya Ôtaka as Yôichi Asakawa
- Yōichi Numata as Takashi Yamamura
- Masako as Shizuko Yamamura
- Miwako Kaji as Kazue Yamamura
- Katsumi Muramatsu as Kôichi Asakawa
- Daisuke Ban as Heihachirô Ikuma
Directed by Hideo Nakata.