Parents' Guide to

Rings

By Jeffrey Anderson, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Some scares in otherwise dull, unnecessary horror sequel.

Movie PG-13 2017 117 minutes
Rings Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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age 14+

Based on 11 parent reviews

MovieMan9888
MovieMan9888 Adult
August 5, 2021
age 13+

Good Scary Movie

I went cinema with a friend to see Rings 2017 it is a good movie gave my friend nightmares and I slept over for 7 days to support him and show hit it ain’t even real

This title has:

Great role models
Rarityfan2019
Rarityfan2019 Adult
March 6, 2020
age 15+

Ring ring yo!

2017 version of the smash hit The Ring from 2002 when VHS was a dying format, and VHS made a comeback among nostalgia purists on Youtube and social media like Facebook and on a decade later.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much consumerism
See all 11 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In RINGS, the cycle of the mysterious video and subsequent deaths continues. After a plane crash kills the latest victim, a professor (Johnny Galecki), visits an estate sale and buys an old VCR. Inside he finds the death-causing tape and watches it; he then receives the inevitable phone call that he'll die in seven days. He saves his own life by "passing on" the curse to others, including clean-cut college student Holt (Alex Roe) and his girlfriend, Julia (Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz). With the curse resting on Julia, she and Holt begin investigating, using the images she sees in the deadly video. They're led to a dying small town and the home of a blind man (Vincent D'Onofrio) who may know more than he lets on.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (11 ):
Kids say (19 ):

This lethargic, sadly unnecessary horror sequel attempts more of the same mythology but quickly proves to be utterly boring, with dull characters, no genuine scares, and nothing to say. Following the American films The Ring (2002) and The Ring Two (2005) and based on the original series of Japanese novels (by Koji Suzuki) and movies, Rings adds nothing to the franchise's mythology, with the possible exception of updating the old VHS tape to new, digital files that can be played on phones and desktops.

The characters' attempt to solve the mystery only begs the question: Didn't they already take care of this in the last couple of movies? And being stuck with the two main characters doesn't help; they're arguably the dullest couple ever to grace a horror movie. Director F. Javier Gutierrez goes for only jump-scares -- including the sudden opening of an umbrella! -- but they're so glumly routine that it's impossible not to guess when they're coming. In the end, this Rings is less "lord" and more "bored."

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about Rings' violence. How much is shown, and how much is implied? Would the movie have been scarier or less scary with more gore? Why or why not? What's the impact of media violence on kids?

  • Is the movie scary? What's the appeal of scary movies?

  • How does this movie compare to the previous entries in the Ring movie series? Why do you think it took so long for the next one to get made?

  • If this happened to you, would you choose to "pass on" the curse to someone else, or would you try to find another solution? Why?

  • What do these movies have to say about the way we share media with each other?

Movie Details

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