Takashi Miike is a cult figure in Asia and an underground legend in the U.S. for his DEAD OR ALIVE series and ICHI THE KILLER. His films are violent and often stylized. In this film, Miike makes a “grudge film,” a popular horror subgenre in Japan.
The premise has innocent victims receiving cell phone calls from themselves, which predict the day and time of their deaths. Melancholy college student Yumi (Kou Shibasaki, BATTLE ROYALE) has seen two of her friends killed by the grudge and her friend Natsumi (Kazue Fukiishi) goes to a TV exorcist when she receives a call. Helping Yumi figure out the mystery is Hiroshi Yamashita (Shinichi Tsutsumi), a morgue worker whose sister was killed by the same ghost.
The film shares many visual scares with the popular JU-ON series, which makes some parts less visually original. However, this film has a much more emotional and solid storyline than any of the four films in the JU-ON series. The mystery of the grudge drives the narrative for most of the film, but horror conventions take over in a creepy sequence in the hospital. This segment is so paint-by-numbers that it almost ruined the film for me.
But a psychological twist dealing with the film’s lingering affects of abuse theme is a powerful exclamation point at the end. The film finishes on character moments not horror film clichés, which was surprising. Some parts of this film will seem familiar to the observant horror fan, but the end is actually thought-provoking.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
