BY LYDIA EARHART

Staff Writer

Ever heard of someone who had a grudge so bad they would haunt and kill anyone that comes into their house?

Doubt it, but it happens in the movies.

Sarah Michelle Gellar has returned to the wonderful world of horror films. Everything would have been fine except someone in this horror film has a grudge.

Gellar, along with Jason Behr, Clea DuVall, William Mapother, Bill Pullman, KaDee Strickland and Grace Zabriskie make up the cast that is spooked by a spirit.

"The Grudge" is centered on a husband's resentment for his wife's obsession with her former teacher.

The death of the wife in a powerful rage causes her spirit, along with her son's, to live on in their house and attack anyone who enters.

Kare Davis (Gellar) is a student studying abroad and is temporarily assigned to be a caretaker of the house. Her temporary assignment is for Emma (Zabriskie), an elderly woman whose family was killed by the spirit of the obsessed wife.

Kare becomes haunted by the spirit whose blood-shot eyes find themselves following her every chance they get.

Gellar's acting is realistic by her facial expressions when she is expected to react in certain spooky situations.

Throughout the movie, Kare sees flashbacks from how the house became haunted.

The flashbacks turn into reality when Kare's boyfriend, Doug (Behr) goes into the house to find her.

It's all in the eyes and when the camera focuses in on them. The spirit's gloomy eyes leave an impression that sticks in the mind.

Given the fact that the spirit does look spooky, it strangely resembles the little girl that people are scared of from "The Ring." They walk alike, wear their hair the same way and even crawl that floor-gripping crawl alike.

The film's scariest parts are predictable under the situations the characters are put in. The theme "don't look in the attic" follows a thought a little child would have.

Speaking of children, this movie has an annoying Asian child's spirit that accompanies his mother in the haunting. He embodies a cat, without the costume, and even sounds like one when he tries to scare his audience.

The movie annoys its audience rather than scares it with the simple sounds of noises children learn at a young age.

"The Grudge" is unintentionally humorous.

Overall, the film has some expected surprising parts which are intentionally made for the audience to jump.

The method of surprise in horror films should not be the only thing that scares the audience.