Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

One Missed Call Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 29, 2020

Note: This film is available as part of One Missed Call Trilogy.

The annals of so-called “J Horror” are filled with films where technology is not a boon to Mankind, but rather a kind of threatening curse. In that regard, it’s perhaps only slightly cheeky to suggest that the One Missed Call “franchise” might have just as easily been called Ringu (or at least its Americanized version Ring), since a sinister ringtone on cellphones becomes a harbinger of death. The fact that a joke can be made about interchangeable titles may point out, however, that as even commentator Tom Mes gets into with regard to the first film, there’s a kind of “been there, done that” quality to One Missed Call in terms of technology run amok sprinkled liberally with what ultimately is a kinda sorta ghost story. While he only was responsible for the first film of the trilogy, it’s perhaps instructive to note how Takashi Miike talks in a supplement included on this release about wanting to do more than simply “scare people” with a horror film, and in fact (as Mes also mentions) there are elements in the first film in particular but also with regard to the entire franchise that may not be “jump out of your seat” fright-mare inducing, but which are decidedly angsty and may in fact have you looking at your Caller ID a little more closely the next time your cellphone rings.

Those who are old enough to remember landlines, rotary phones and a monolithic entity simply known as The Phone Company, may recall that there used to be a trick (four digits, if I'm remembering correctly) that you could dial from your own home phone which would then make that phone ring as soon as you hung up. This was a common prank to play on your parents and siblings when I was a kid, but there's something at least a little similar at play in the foundational conceit of One Missed Call, whereby a series of "victims" get called (on their cellphones, of course) by themselves, evidently, albeit from sometime in the future, with voicemails left documenting their upcoming demises. It is of course simply an exchange of one technology for another, in terms of any number of other J Horror outings where "a murder is announced", to quote a certain Agatha Christie.

If the underpinning of One Missed Call is at least reasonably effective, as Tom Mes kind of sheepishly admits in his commentary, anyone trying to make complete sense of the narrative once it gets to a series of revelations toward the end of the film may indeed have a hard time. The heroine of the enterprise, Yumi (Ko Shibasaki) has been investigating a series of mysterious deaths along with detective Hiroshi (Shinichi Tsutsumi), all of which seem to be tied to equally mysterious cellphone calls. But there are a number of other elements in play, including (rather incredibly) child abuse, what amounts to Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome (or at least a perception of same), asthma (!), and just for good measure, a resurrected corpse which Mes jokes seems to be decidedly more "physical" than your typical J Horror ghost.

One Missed Call Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

All three films in the One Missed Call Trilogy are presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with AVC encoded 1080p transfers in 1.85:1. Arrow lumps all three together in their very brief verbiage about the transfers in their insert booklet:

One Missed Call, One Missed Call 2 and One Missed Call: Final are presented in their original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 with 5.1 and 2.0 stereo sound. The high definition digital transfers were provided by Kadokawa.

I frankly wish I knew a bit more about the provenance of this master, as One Missed Call exhibits some of the same odd looking elements that have afflicted other releases of Japanese cinema, with anemic contrast, a kind of slate gray tone underpinning a lot of the presentation, and pretty milky blacks. It's nowhere near the levels seen in The Twilight Samurai, to cite one example, but it just didn't quite look "right" to me. There's also a very heavy grainfield at times, to the point that skies can look a bit on the noisy side, as at circa 31:42. Those elements aside, there is definitely an agreeable delineation in detail levels throughout the presentation, at least when lighting conditions allow (this is probably the most relentlessly dark of the three One Missed Call films, with many sequences playing out in minimal lighting). Though the palette seems slightly odd due to the grayness of everything, colors do pop relatively well, again when lighting conditions allow.

One Missed Call Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

All three films in this set feature DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 tracks. One Missed Call exploits the surround channels in any number of sequences featuring a lot of people, as in scenes set in restaurants or school. There is also some nice placement of spooky ambient environmental effects throughout the presentation, along with occasional bursts of LFE obviously meant to provoke a startle response. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout this problem free presentation.

One Missed Call Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Arrow has packaged this as a two disc release, with the first film and supplements on Disc One and the two sequels and supplements on Disc Two. Here is a list of the supplementary material on both discs:

Disc One ( One Missed Call)

• Commentary by Tom Mes


• The Making of One Missed Call (1080i; 57:06) is an archival featurette which has a lot of fun candid footage of Miike. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Cast and Crew Interviews (1080i; 14:23) include Kou Shibasaki, Shinichi Tsutsumi, Kazue Fukiishi, and Takashi Miike. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Interview with Takashi Miike (1080i; 20:15) is in Japanese with English subtitles.


• Screenings (1080i; 14:09) aggregates footage from things like film festivals and the like.


• Live or Die (1080i; 11:56) offers raw footage from the TV special in the film, from two different angles (switchable via the angle button on your remote).


• A Day with the Mizunuma Family (1080i; 2:45) is more "raw footage", supposedly from the "nanny cam" in the house that's seen in the film.


• Alternate Ending (1080i; 3:44) comes with a warning not to let little kids see this due to its "graphic nature".


• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:21)


• Teaser Trailers (1080p; 00:51)


• TV Spots (1080p; 2:15)

Disc Two ( One Missed Call 2 and One Missed Call: Final)

• The Making of One Missed Call 2 (1080i; 32:46) is an archival featurette which has some English text elements but which is in Japanese with English subtitles. Like its counterpart on Disc One, this has quite a bit of fun candid footage.


• Gomu (1080p; 3:51) is a short "tie in" to One Missed Call 2 directed by Renpei Tsukamoto.


• One Missed Call 2 Deleted Scenes (1080i; 10:10) are windowboxed and include interstitial commentary from director Renpei Tsukamoto (in 1.33:1).


• One Missed Call 2 Music Video (1080i; 4:46)


• One Missed Call 2 Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:38)


• One Missed Call 2 Teaser Trailers (1080i; 1:37)


• One Missed Call 2 TV Spots (1080p; 1:17)


• The Making of One Missed Call: Final (1080i; 51:55) is another fun archival piece with a lot of candid footage. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Maki and Meisa (1080i; 15:34) is an archival piece featuring two of the stars of One Missed Call: Final. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Behind the Scenes with Keun Suk-Jang (1080i; 11:45) is another archival piece, with the South Korean star of One Missed Call: Final. I believe Keun is speaking in Korean, as evidenced by what I think are Japanese subtitles, but there are English subs as well.


• The Love Story (1080i; 12:06) is another "tie in" short, this time to One Missed Call: Final.


• Candid Mimiko (1080i; 15:02) is a "tour" of locations hosted by the "villain". This has some windowboxed elements (with others in 1.33:1), with Japanese writing of some sort underneath, and English subs for the spoken Japanese.


• One Missed Call: Final Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 1:49)

One Missed Call Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

One Missed Call may in fact feel a bit like a kind of prank, refashioning a number of "technology run amok" tropes from other J Horror outings to intermittent effect. This is probably the most stylish of the three One Missed Call films courtesy of the typically florid touches from Takashi Miike, and fans of this sometimes gonzo auteur will probably be willing to overlook any perceived narrative deficiencies. Video is a little odd looking, but audio is fine, and the supplementary package excellent. With caveats noted, One Missed Call comes Recommended.