October 18, 2002

This American remake of a famous Japanese suspense film is about an urban legend that has come to life: whenever a mysterious, unlabeled videotape is run, its unlucky viewer gets a phone call just after seeing it. The voice on the other end of the phone says simply, "Seven days." It's how long the viewer has to live, and the corpse looks like something out of a Francis Bacon daydream. When her niece dies after seeing the videotape, Rachel (Naomi Watts), a Seattle reporter, decides to investigate the rumors. She watches the freakout tape, complete with suffering animals and static-ridden flash cuts. Much of what follows consists of closeups of the clues that Rachel, desperate to stay alive, sifts through to solve the mystery. But while impressively made, this impassive and cold feature fails, in a spectacular fashion, to deliver the thrills. — Elvis Mitchell

Dave Anderson Sports of The Times column discusses New York Giants Historical Society, which keeps memory of New York baseball Giants, now San Francisco Giants, alive and well in anticipation of World Series; photo (M)

Sears, Roebuck says its credit division has suffered unexpected losses from delinquent cardholders that will depress earnings for rest of year; says earnings for third quarter will be higher than last year but still 26 percent below company's prediction made in early October; most of credit trouble seems to be rooted in Gold MasterCard programthat Sears began offering two years ago; chairman Alan J Lacy comments; photo (M)

Mayor Michael Bloomberg administration has quietly set up 18 new homeless shelters across city for more than 1,200 families resulting in protests from neighbors and their political leaders; residents complain that shelters were opened with no notice and litle chance for public hearings; City Councilman James E Davis has introduced bill requiring agency for homeless to give local public officials 60 days' notice before building or acquiring shelter; many homeowners and other residents near new shelters say their quiet streets have been ruffled by annoying incivilities; other homeowners and residents say black and Hispanic areas are being singled out for shelters; map (M)

Accident investigators find that AirTrain that derailed in September near Kennedy International Airport, killing driver Kelvin DeBourgh, ran off tracks because it was traveling too fast on downhill curve not intended to handle trains at that speed; investigators say speed regulator was intentionally disabled for test, and that train could not have remained on such inclined curve at speed of 55 to 58 miles per hour, which onboard recording deviced recovered by National Transportation Safety Board showed it was traveling at time of accident; many questions remain, among them whether Bombardier Transportation, company that built and was testing train, called for it to be traveling that fast at that section of track, and whether operator DeBourgh, alone in train, was exceeding speed specified in test; federal investigator says test called for such high speeds in curve area, where they were not safe, and that test itself was poorly planned; Port Authority of New York and New Jersey officials cannot confirm that finding and will not discuss issues relating to accident; photo (M)