Chakushin ari (2003)

Director:

Takashi Miike

Writers:

Yasushi Akimoto (novel)
Minako Daira (screenplay)

Release Date:

17 January 2004 (Japan)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

Death cannot be put on hold...

Plot:

People mysteriously start receiving voicemail messages from their future selves, in the form of the sound of them reacting to their own violent deaths.

Plot Keywords:

Death | Message | Hospital | Asthma | Friend

Cast

Kou Shibasaki	...	Yumi Nakamura
Shin'ichi Tsutsumi	...	Hiroshi Yamashita
Kazue Fukiishi	...	Natsumi Konishi
Anna Nagata	...	Yoko Okazaki
Atsushi Ida	...	Kenji Kawai
Mariko Tsutsui	...	Marie Mizunuma
Kumiko Imai
Keiko Tomita
Kayoko Fujii
Yoshiko Noda
Azusa	...	Ritsuko Yamashita
Tetsushi Tanaka
Mitsuhiro Sato
Kaoru Hanaki
Hassei Takano

Also Known As:

One Missed Call (Philippines: English title) (USA)
You've Got a Call (Japan: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, disturbing images and brief nudity.

Runtime:

Japan:112 min | USA:111 min | Argentina:112 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Italy:T | Portugal:M/16 | Australia:MA | Germany:16 | Malaysia:18SG | Malaysia:U (cut version) | South Korea:15 | Peru:14 | UK:15 | New Zealand:R16 | France:-12 | Finland:K-15 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Philippines:R-13 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R | Spain:18

Company:

Kadokawa-Daiei Eiga K.K.

Trivia:

In the Philippines, the movie poster carries the tagline "For the creators of The Ring and Juon: The Grudge 2." The two mentioned movies have no connection with this movie (except both movies also came from Japan where this movie was originated).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When the hand is reaching for Yumi in the hospital, the finger twists backwards, however, you can see someone’s hand holding up the arm when the arm and finger start to contort backwards.

Movie Connections:

Version of "Chakushin ari" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Ikutsuka no Sora

The Call from Death

While in a bar with her friends, the teenager Yoko Okazaki (Anna Nagata) receives a call in her cellular with a voice mail from the future telling the date and time when she would die. On the next day, Yumi overhears a group of students talking about the urban legend that people connected in the address book of cellular are mysteriously receiving phone calls with date and time of their death in the near future. In the precise informed hour, Yoko is attacked by a supernatural force in a train station while talking to her friend Yumi Nakamura (Kou Shibasaki) by phone and dies with severed arm and leg. Yumi seeks out Kioto's boyfriend Kenji Kawai (Atsushi Ida), who also received a call, and witnesses his death in an elevator shaft. When her roommate Natsumi Konishi (Kazue Fukiishi) receives a call, Yoko befriends Hiroshi Yamashita (Shin'ichi Tsutsumi), who tells her that his sister Ritsuko (Azusa) that worked in the Child Guidance Center with abused children was the first victim of the phone call. While in the hospital, Yumi hears an asthma pump and recalls that she heard the same noise when Kenji died. They decide to investigate victims of asthma in the hospital and find the name of Marie Mizunuma and her daughters Mimiko and Nanako. They search the family together trying to save Natsumi from her fate.

"Chakushin Ari" is scary like most of the Asian horror movies, and has a promising beginning supported by a great acting and a good plot. However, the last quarter of the movie is confused, not clear, needing interpretation; therefore, the screenplay writer Minako Daira or the cult director Takashi Miike or both failed since they were not able to transmit a clear conclusion of the story to the audience. I glanced in IMDb the most different interpretations for the end of the story to ratify my opinion. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Ligação Perdida" ("Missed Call")