Sam Raimi: My style of filmmaking did not affect The Grudge

Sam Raimi and Nicolas Pesce’s The Grudge opens today in theaters. Yesterday, during an AMA on Reddit, the director revealed if his filmmaking style had an effect on the current film.

Sam Raimi was behind the 2004 American version of The Grudge albeit in a producing role. The Sarah Michelle Gellar production was a rousing box office smash garnering $187, 281, 115 worldwide. On a budget of $10,000,000, that is definitely impressive.

Nicolas Pesce’s current incarnation starring Lin Shaye, Andrea Riseborough, John Cho and Demián Bichir has been highly anticipated since it was announced last year. On the eve of the film being released into theaters, Raimi took to Reddit for an AMA with fans.

While Pesce’s film received an R-rating and both he and Raimi were going for edgier and gorier fare than Gellar’s PG-13 effort, The Grudge is definitely not the result of any influence on the Evil Dead director’s part. It was solely Pesce’s vision.

As a matter of fact, Raimi likens it to a horrific love note from Nicolas Pesce to legendary Japanese filmmaker, Takashi Shimizu. In his words:

"“It is their styles that crafted this upcoming film. As a producer I tried to be as helpful as I could to Nick and the world of GRUDGE.”"

In a new clip featuring John Cho, courtesy of 411 Mania, we can definitely see that Pesce is a master of tension and suspense. The lighting in particular is ominous and the way Cho approaches the bathtub is enough to leave you on the edge of your seat.

This has all of the hallmarks of being a well-crafted horror film creating suspense that reminds us very much of the way Alfred Hitchcock approached Psycho.

The Grudge opens in theaters today! Check your local listings.

Are you planning on seeing The Grudge? What is your favorite Sam Raimi and Nicolas Pesce film? Let us know in the comments.