One Missed Call

Voicemail messages begin appearing that seem to come from people’s own futures. Each recording captures the moment a listener reacts to a violent death and logs the exact date and time of that death. As the recorded warnings surface, a chain of events unfolds that unsettles friends and families who confront the possibility that their fates are already sealed. A journalist or investigator and a group of ordinary people chase clues through messages, unanswered phone calls, and eerie coincidences, trying to prevent the prophesied tragedies. Their search blends horror with mystery as time ticks toward a chilling reckoning. As danger grows, the clock itself feels like a character, turning ordinary places into traps and testing the bonds among friends everywhere.

Directed by Takashi Miike, One Missed Call (2003) stars Ko Shibasaki and Shinichi Tsutsumi, and is built on a concept by Yasushi Akimoto and Minako Daira, placing Miike in his most unsettling supernatural territory to date for Japanese genre cinema.

The movie grossed roughly 17.6 million dollars worldwide, a solid return relative to its modest 1.7 million dollar budget, and it performed particularly well in certain markets for its genre, especially in East Asia and Europe, with home video sales.

Its premise of haunting voicemail warnings has left a mark on horror conversations and influenced later thrillers about fate and technology. The concept traveled beyond Japan, spawning a 2008 American remake and sparking ongoing discussions about digital curses and the era of smartphones. Its impact lingers in retrospective analyses worldwide.

Critics highlighted the film's tense atmosphere and Miike's efficient hand in delivering scares, blending supernatural mystery with modern anxieties about technology and mortality. The story prompts viewers to consider how small choices intersect with a timetable that feels prewritten as it continues to influence modern horror discourse for modern audiences.