According to the plot anyone who watches the tape is cursed and has a week to copy the tape and show it to someone else, otherwise they will be killed by Samara’s ghost.
The tape’s images are a playback on Samara’s life. Samara was pushed down a well by her adoptive mother, Anna Morgan,spending seven days trying to escape but died on the seventh, using her nensha powers (the power to burn photographic images from ones mind to a film tape) to make the tape, out of vengeance and a desire to be found.
This movie was truly iconic.
And if you missed or want to watch it again, here you go
