Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!
Plot Summary: After her friends are killed, a woman finds herself as the latest victim in a curse that passes from cell phone to cell phone.
Review: I remember watching a UK produced documentary about Asian horror, and they discussed how this movie was a flat out remake of "Phone," but I have never heard that again. I don't see how they could reasonably be compared since the only connections are with the use of cell phones and the typical cliches. Also, there is a book version (just $1000 new on Amazon!), but I don't know which came first in this regard. Oh well, as I've stated before, I find OMC to be vastly superior and obviously it's popularity far exceeds that of "Phone" considering this had a TV series, two sequels, a dubbed version, and a Hollywood remake. The reason why this film easily ranks amongst the Asian horror legends is because it's genuinely scary and implements a cool story with well executed ideas. But it does have its flaws like the slow start, contrivances, and that nonsensical ending that I still can't understand to this day; hell, they didn't even know what they were going for which is why they ditched it for the sequel.
The story follows Yumi, played by the notorious Kou Shibasaki (although I prefer her real name, Yuki), as she uncovers a curse that spreads through cell phones. In retrospect, Yumi's personal storyline is a bit contrived with her studying psychology and having childhood trauma that never gets a proper explanation but conveniently connects to the film's events. I mean, her mom was abusive, her grandmother committed suicide seemingly, and we don't know anything about the dad. As for the curse, it works whereby you receive a message from the future in which you die and then, at that specific time, you are killed by the ghost with someone in your contact list being the next person selected to carry on the curse. The deaths are various, but the victims always hear a suction sound and have a piece of candy in their mouth afterward. I should also note that the ghost has a certain trickster nature to her that will make a lot more sense by the end.
We begin things with one of Yumi's friends receiving the first cursed call after reporting that she had just come from a funeral. The ringtone is creepy with a noticeably distinct sound that is wonderfully easy to hum along to when this movie scares a friend. There are a few moments of shenanigans at the beginning that I'm not quite sure what they mean. Like, why do we see the ghost have her hand around Yumi and the ghost seemingly in the bathroom? Was the ghost always interested in Yumi or something? That issue never gets cleared up, but it does add to the tension I suppose. Anyway, Yumi's friend is later killed mysteriously with her severed hand dialing another friend's number setting up the same circumstance with a future phone call. This time Yumi is there first-hand to see what appears to be a supernatural force killing the next friend. Freaked out, Yumi stays with her best friend, Natsumi, as Natsumi is the next to receive the call. Sadly for dear Natsumi, she gets a text photo showing the ghost coming for her that gradually moves forward in the photo as the days pass closer to Natsumi's time of death.
Obviously the police don't believe in any of this, but somehow the media gets wind of the story and wants to have Natsumi on a live show where they will bless, exorcise, or whatever the hell, the poor girl. Up to this point things were going a deliberately slow pace but from here on things pick up. Yumi talks to a guy that had been lurking in the background, named Yamashita, who explains that his sister was one of the first victims of this curse and she had a candy in her mouth when she died, thus, catching his attention. When Natsumi goes on the show, it is pretty much a spectacle at her expense with no one taking it seriously but her. When the ghost finally does come for Natsumi it is on live TV. I loved this aspect! We always have these movies where people face ghosts and monsters but never get real help. OMC decided to up the game and have someone go on live TV to escape the ghost and still get killed. After Natsumi, quite literally, loses her head, Yumi is of course the next to get the cursed call.
Not wanting to go out like a bitch, Yumi and Yamashita investigate the origin of the curse and find a link to Yamashita's sister dealing with a missing woman, named Marie, and her two daughters, one who died recently. Supposedly Marie was abusing her kids which led to the older daughter, Mimiko's, death. The two visit the family's apartment and Yumi finds a photo of Marie that looks like the ghost...who makes a nice little appearance. I have to say, is it really intelligent to list the names of the household above the door to your apartment? That's just inviting trouble in my opinion. Yamashita talks to the surviving daughter, Nanako, and finds out the creepy ringtone was the theme music for some old kid's show. Yumi decides to go alone to the burned down hospital Marie worked at since her time is running out. This is the point in the film where a lot of scares come in great succession of one another; I like the ghost walking on the ceiling best of all though. Yamashita eventually shows up as they find they are trapped and time is almost up. Yamashita notices another phone in the room as he discovers the rotting body of Marie clutching her cell phone. Yumi draws the idiotic conclusion that Marie's ghost was killing people because she wanted to be found. Oh Yumi, what am I going to do with you? Then the best moment of the film occurs as Marie's dead body springs to life with great makeup effects. Marie tries to kill Yumi, but Yumi has flashbacks of her own mom and sobs like a baby until the ghost of Marie gives up out of pity and goes off to Kayako-land or something. With that, the curse does appear to be over for good as the police wrap things up. There was also some bullshit moment where Yamashita sees the apparent ghost of his sister talking gibberish about different skies, but I have no idea what that was all about.
Since you know this isn't the end, Yumi goes home as Yamashita and a detective meets up with Nanako again. Yamashita is shown a tape of Mimiko being the one that was abusing Nanako and that Marie seemingly let Mimiko die from an asthma attack in order to take Nanako to the hospital. Nanako says that when Mimiko would hurt her she would always give her a piece of candy that is the same one that had been in each victim's mouth. Although it is not explicitly explained, the Marie-looking ghost we saw was Mimiko dicking around as she began the curse by killing Marie, then Yamashita's sister, and so on. Mimiko of course comes after Yumi as she somehow possesses Yumi. Not entirely sure how that's happening but okay. Yamashita shows up and is stabbed by the possessed Yumi who says she will take him to the hospital in the same manner Mimiko would do with Nanako. We then get a shot of Yamashita saving Mimiko from death which I guess is merely a dream...hell if I know. Yamashita wakes up with the possessed Yumi waiting to hurt him more as she seductively spits a piece of candy into his mouth and wields a knife behind her back. Damn, Mimiko, calm down! The movie ends with a shot of the sky and a song that has lyrics resembling the nonsense Yamashita's sister was saying when she appeared. I'm assuming the cycle of abuse is supposed to continue, but where is the hospital staff and what is this shit about different skies?!
OMC proved you could take a formula, that was already getting tired back in 2003, and spin the material into something original and creative. Overall, there's much to love with this film; the interesting ideas work well even if a few make no sense. I especially loved the concept of having a character get killed on TV; though, shouldn't we have had a followup scene discussing a frightened public that saw this go down? The makeup effects are impressive, the music is nice especially the ringtone, the mystery keeps you interested, and there are memorable scares. The first time I saw this movie I was really unnerved and that's why I ranked it in my top 10 list. This is a must-watch if you're a fan of Asian horror as this is one of the foundation films. However, as much of a classic this may be, be wary of the ending's implications, the contrivances heavily strewn about, and the slow start.
Notable Moment: When Marie comes back to life in the tub. I was really freaked out the first time I saw this, because she looked like she was blending into the background.
Final Rating: 7.5/10
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