One Missed Call (Japan)
There's something mysterious about missing a phone call, when you don't know who it was that was trying to reach you. Even in our everyday lives, we get one or two cell phone anomalies. But, have you ever gotten a phone call that originated from your own phone? Most would dismiss this as a prank call, or merely one of many cell phone 'glitches'. But when you hear yourself in the throes of dying... that changes things... This is the situation in Takashi Miike's One Missed Call.
Meet Yumi. Your typical, happy go lucky teen, who one night - while hanging out with friends - is witness to her friend Yoko getting the afore mentioned phone call on her cell. Yoko calls the voicemail service, only to find out that the message is date stamped with tomorrow's date. Recognizing this, the two decide to listen to the voicemail message. What they hear is quite a shock. They hear Yoko herself taking notice to the fact that it's about to rain, and then very very loud scream. Almost dropping the phone they hang up. The two look quizzingly at one another, and decide to dismiss the phone message. The next evening, Yoko calls Yumi, and it's only moments after Yumi realizes that Yoko is calling at the same time the voicemail message said she would. Yoko begins to remember, and moment's later she is dead... by way of a train...
The remaining friends go to Yoko's funeral, and learn from other former school friends about the curse. They warn to not answer your phone, or to get a whole new number altogether. Yumi decides to do just that. On her way there, she notices a man who she had seen at Yoko's funeral. She tracks him down ad finds out that he's heard of the cellphone curse. Fact is, he's an undertaker, and he has been trying to find his sister, whom fell victim to the same curse as her friends. The two decide to join forces to try to put an end to their friends and family from disappearing to these mysterious phone calls. But, are they really prepared for the journey that lies ahead? Can they solve the curse before it consumes them both?
was in my favorite movie store, looking through the new "J-Horror" movies and came across this one. And I'm happy to say, that I'm glad I picked this one up. Takashi Miike has once again blown me away. While it's not Audition, it's still got a really good story, it's stylish, and the way it's paced will keep you guessing right up to the ending, which I didn't see coming at all. There is one mystery in the story that doesn't get solved right until the end, so you'll enjoy seeing that.There's a lot of good special effects, and the tension DOES grow. As many already know, Takashi Miike is one to keep both eyes on!
— Brian K. James
overal movie rating:
7 out of 10
Now, you'll get one of those "You've got to be kidding" looks when asked what the movie is about — a cellphone curse, but let me assure you, there is a decent 'creep' factor in this movie. The other thing to note, is that this was done by Takashi Miike. This is one of Japan's most infamous directors. I showed this to a friend, and she really liked it. The DVD has the making of, which is really interesting to watch too! One to get if you see it.
