Watch Order
0 / 4 watchedOriginal then remake trilogy.
About Pulse
Pulse starts with Kairo, Kiyoshi Kurosawa 2001 techno horror about ghosts invading through the internet, screened at Cannes. Dimension remade it as Pulse in August 2006 with Kristen Bell, written by Wes Craven, earning 30 million. Two direct to video sequels followed in 2008, Pulse 2 Afterlife in September and Pulse 3 in December, both from Joel Soisson about wireless ghosts and laptop reopening.
The Japanese original and American trilogy share the ghost internet hook but reset cast and city, so they play as parallel versions. Kairo keeps two Tokyo threads about disappearances, while the US run follows college groups after the signal spreads.
Good to know
Watch Kairo first for tone and rules, then Pulse 2006, Pulse 2 and Pulse 3 in release order for the US arc. The US sequels assume remake setup known but ignore Kairo plot details. Kurosawa novelized his script as an extra, which stays outside film order as a reading branch rather than a viewing step.
