Astoria gets rave reviews in ‘The Ring Two’

ASTORIA, Ore. – The locals never get tired of seeing this coastal city on the big screen.

“Goonies” was filmed here 20 years ago and was followed by “Short Circuit,” “Kindergarten Cop,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III,” “Free Willy” and “Free Willy 2.”

Astoria made its Hollywood return Friday night when “The Ring Two” opened. The film got mixed reviews from those who attended a special showing, but the city itself got a unanimous thumbs-up.

“I loved the shots of the city,” said Wendy Berezay, a stay-at-home mother of five. “It really shows the lovely place we live.”

The film begins with a shot of the Columbia River and one of Astoria’s distinctive neighborhood hillsides, drawing a spontaneous round of whistles and applause from those who attended the sold-out showing to raise money for a local playground project.

They repeated their approval each time a recognizable landmark came into view: the Astoria Column, the Astoria-Megler Bridge, the historic city trolley and the working riverfront.

Viewers also came to see familiar-looking extras appearing in the film, a follow-up to the 2002 movie that tracks the plight of an investigative reporter (Naomi Watts) haunted by the spirit of a young girl.

Local beer truck driver Melton LuCore can be seen driving the moving truck that takes mother and son (Watts and David Dorfman) to their new home. Lucore worked four days for what amounted to 10 seconds on the screen.

“It was worth it,” he said.

Though residents groaned and chuckled at some of the movie’s silliest moments, they judged their city’s role a success, breaking into applause when the ending credits rolled and the words “Thank You Astoria” flashed across the screen.