"The story of 'Ring' would seem at first to be rooted firmly in the 20th century, with its central urban-legend theme of a cursed videotape which kills anyone who see it within 7 days; however, the mysterious main character, Yamamura Sadako, is definitely based on a very traditional Japanese character: the vengeful female ghost. Long in Japanese art and theatre (certainly since the Meiji period), as well as the hannya (female demons) of ancient folktales, evil female spirits have been popular figures. In kabuki and noh, there are stories such as Oiwa (the tale of a woman poisoned by her husband who returns to kill him) and Okiku (about a female servant killed and thrown down a well which she then haunts every night). However, the real secret of the video-curse, a virus part-smallpox and part-Sadako's DNA, is again defiantly 20th century, ensuring that the story is relevant to contemporary issues as well as ancient mythology."To see more on the mythologies of Japanese Horror, have a look at the following site:
What fears and anxieties are metaphorically explored in the film? Some food for thought.
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