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its hard to compare oranges to apples ... this is just too topical.
I know you dont like it - but Ringu - would not have been Ringu in north america .. not that Hollywood would have ruined it .. it just wouldnt exist.
if ringu was released in america ans an american production ...it would have the same effect it has now ... only a select few would see it. North Americs (general audiences) arent ready for an atmospheric horror like that ... they want the Screams, and the Urban Legends ..etc.
A good example is the Grudge. Same Director .. same style as the origional ... and people are panning it left right and centre.
Maybe it doesnt seem right to the real fans .. the american actors cant pull it off ... and the joe public cant handle it because it is too
dreamy and non linear. Most people hate that. They need something they can follow.
I think an American Ringu would be a cult favorite with true fans but thats it.
A Scream in Japan .. not sure how that would have affected anything. It wasnt a revelation like Ringu, it was a rejuvination, or ressurection.
It was successful because it payed homage to the slasher films of the 80's - it found its audience and it was the same audience thats always been here. I'm not discounting the film, i thought it was pretty clever (the 1st one) and i can hardly blame the filmmakers that tried to cash in as the demand was there.
I dont know the japanese demographic enough to know how something like that would have been received ... are they traditionally fans of the slasher genre ?
I would suspect not because it certainly doesnt seem to be the kind of film they embrace. They prefer something far more stylish.
i dont know if that answers the questions you posed in your post.
if I did understand it correctly then i think my answer is that if you 'switched movies' neither would have had the impact they did because of the particular cultural tastes of the respective countries.
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