Product Details

• Actors: Jennifer Connelly, Ariel Gade, John C. Reilly, Tim Roth, Dougray Scott
• Directors: Walter Salles
• Writers: Hideo Nakata, Kôji Suzuki, Rafael Yglesias, Takashige Ichise
• Producers: Ashley Kramer, Bill Mechanic, Diana Pokorny
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: French (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: Spanish, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Buena Vista Home Entertainment / Touchstone
• DVD Release Date: December 26, 2005
• Run Time: 105 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (188 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000AWYOG4
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #80,489 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
In many ways Dark Water improves upon the memorable Japanese film it's based on. The earlier version was directed by Hideo Nakata (whose excellent shocker Ringu was remade in America as The Ring), but in the hands of director Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries) and screenwriter Rafael Yglesias, this psychological horror story gets an intelligent and more chillingly effective overhaul. The story is rooted in themes of love and loss that Yglesias similarly explored in his excellent screenplay for Peter Weir's Fearless, here focusing on young mother Dahlia (Jennifer Connelly) as she endures difficult divorce proceedings and settles into a low-rent apartment in New York's cramped Roosevelt Island community, near Manhattan, with her young daughter Cecilia (Ariel Gade). Amidst seemingly endless rainfall, Dahlia's world slowly unravels, and Connelly is superb as a woman seemingly on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Or is she? Could it be that Cecilia's imaginary friend, and the apartment's persistent leaks of dark, dripping water, are the ghostly manifestations of a young girl who had been abandoned by the previous tenant? Creepy atmosphere and high anxiety are expertly maintained by Salles, and supporting roles for Tim Roth, John C. Reilly and especially Pete Postlethwaite give the film an added edge of mystery. The tension builds slowly (gore-mongers and action fans may be disappointed), but the cumulative effect is palpably unnerving, inviting favorable comparison to Rosemary's Baby. Unlike some other remakes of Japanese horror hits, Dark Water doesn't feel redundant; it stands on its own thanks to the impressive work of everyone involved. --Jeff Shannon

Product Description
The terror of DARK WATER reaches new heights on Blu-ray disc. Starring acclaimed actress Jennifer Connelly, the film "Rolling Stone" calls "a torrent of suspense" is a visual and auditory wonder in this revolutionary high-definition format. Life becomes a living nightmare for Dahlia Williams and her daughter when their new apartment begins to take on a life of its own. Experience every heart-stopping moment in razor-sharp 1080p, and feel the grip of every blood-curdling scream delivered in 5.1 48 kHz, 16-bit uncompressed audio. See, hear, and feel the excitement with Blu-ray high definition.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dark Water is Creepy and Murky, February 6, 2007

By	Steven Hedge "Movie Fan" (Somewhere "East of Eden") - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Dark Water (Unrated Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

The ever reliable Jennifer Connelly gives another very convincing performance in this atmospheric film. The supporting cast is perfect and believable. The direction is clever and well-paced, but not heavy-handed for this genre. The scriptwriters created terrific characters and believable plot twists in this very suspenseful and eerie film.

This is another well-adapted and even improved version of the original Japanese horror flick, but it isn't in the same vein as The Grudge although it is influenced by it. It is much more subdued and darker than that film and is more character driven. Some may not like this slower, more deliberately paced chiller, but that is what gives it momentum and suspense. I think it's very well-paced for the genre it falls into which is the traditional haunted house kind of film.

This film is worth owning, but not having seen the film in the theaters, I have no clue what was added to this "unrated" edition of the original PG-13 theatrical release. I can say that I found nothing objectionable in it as sometimes happens with these "unrated" releases. Less shocking and intense than other Asian horror imports or influenced films, but that made this a fun popcorn film for me and my family as there is no bloodshed, violence, sex, or nudity in this film.

46 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lost and abandoned, July 24, 2005

By	bonsai chicken (United States) - See all my reviews

DARK WATER concerns a young woman named Dahlia Williams (Jennifer Connelly) who is going through a messy custody battle with her husband over their daughter, Cecelia. With little money on hand, they move into the creepiest apartment building they can afford on Roosevelt Island in New York. It is a dank, depressing place, but they don't have much choice. At least the school nearby is highly regarded.

Before long, they begin to experience plumbing problems, presumably from the apartment above them. Evil-looking stains appear on the ceiling and grow. Dahlia can't make any headway with the evasive landlord or maintenance man. Then there's the mysterious whispering, and her daughter has seemingly made an imaginary friend - who tells her things about her mother that she couldn't possibly know.

DARK WATER, like THE RING, is a remake of a Japanese film by Hideo Nakata and based on a story by Koji Suzuki. Unlike THE RING or THE GRUDGE, the other big horror import of the last few years, this version fails to improve on or even equal the quality or effectiveness of the original film. The story hasn't changed, but all the frightening or even creepy moments I remember from Nakata's film are absent. There is no build-up or tension. This film is - sorry - severely watered down.

Moreover, audiences unaware that this is a remake of a film from 2002 are likely to find it too similar to THE RING TWO (which was also directed by Nakata, but which was not a remake of the Japanese RING 2) and think it derivative, when in fact it's the other way around.

If I hadn't seen the Japanese original, I'd probably have a much higher opinion of this one. The performances are great. It's an okay movie, as it stands, but much was lost in the translation.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars What would you give up to keep your child safe..., January 16, 2007

By	Gayle Surrette "omnivorous reader" (Brandywine, Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dark Water (Unrated Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

Dahlia (Connelly) is a newly divorced mother in a bitter custody battle with her ex (Scott) over their daughter Cecilia. Dahlia finds an apartment on Roosevelt Island. The apartment's cramped and the building on the neglected side but the school is excellent. The ex threatens to sue for custody unless she moves to his neighborhood. So Dahlia is trying to find a lawyer, get the plumbing in the upstairs apartment, which is leaking into her bedroom fixed, and deal with Cecilia's sudden development of an imaginary friend, and finding a new job.

Dahlia suffers from severe and frequent migraines and her ex is charging that she is mentally unstable and unfit to care for their child. Finally, getting a lawyer she begins to take charge of her life. She tries to find the source of the water leaking from upstairs and learns that the family moved out and the daughter has the same name as Cecilia's imaginary friend. The lawyer takes each issue at face value as Dahlia seems to be degenerating into insanity.

The audience can see things going on that the major characters don't see and so you're left wondering what is going to happen next. The film is dark and creepy but far more psychologically creepy than scary for most of the film. Of course, just when you think things may turn out okay there are several twists that pull the rug out from under the viewer. But this is a bleak film about love and family -- it may be hard to watch not for the violence, horror, or whatever but because in spite of the supernatural aspects it hits close to the heart for many people with less than ideal family situations.