Sadako(2019)
2019 · Hideo Nakata · 99 min
A psychologist connects her missing brother to the strange case of a mysterious little girl believed to be Sadako reincarnated.
Horror
5.8139 votes
TMDB score
2/5
Intensity
1/5
Gore
2/5
Stays with you
How scary is Sadako?
There's a nagging, slow unease running through most of it, the kind that comes from long hallways, static-filled screens, and a sense that something is watching from just out of frame, but it also cashes that tension in with sudden jolts more often than the original film did. The threat here is a curse and a vengeful ghost, not a human killer, so the fear leans more toward the eerie and uncanny than anything bloody. It's a fairly easy watch for horror fans who like a creepy mood piece with a few good jump scares mixed in, rather than something that will leave you shaken for days. Blood and violence stay minimal throughout, with the scares coming from atmosphere and a growing sense of dread instead.
On The Horror Database's 0–5 scare profile, Sadako rates psychological 3/5, visceral 2/5, gore 1/5, lingering effect 2/5, and overall intensity 2/5.
- Psychological: 3 of 5
- Visceral: 2 of 5
- Gore: 1 of 5
- Lingering: 2 of 5
- Intensity: 2 of 5
Slow burn vs Jump scares: 60 of 100 — leans Jump scares
Supernatural vs Real-world: 10 of 100 — leans Supernatural
Fun-scary vs Disturbing: 40 of 100 — leans Fun-scary
Intensity over runtime
Shape only — no eventsReveal pacing shapeHide pacing shapeHidden by default — shows where the tension peaks and lets up.
A slow, moody build with scattered unsettling moments that gradually tightens into a tense, scare-heavy final stretch.
Intensity across the runtime, 0 to 100: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5.
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