One Cut of the Dead (Kamera o tomeru na!) (2019)
93%RT Audience Score: 86%
Awards & Nominations: 27 wins & 21 nominations
Brainy and bloody in equal measure, One Cut of the Dead reanimates the moribund zombie genre with a refreshing blend of formal daring and clever satire.
One Cut of the Dead is like a love letter to all the indie filmmakers out there who are just trying to make their dreams come true. It’s got everything you could want in a zombie movie: gore, humor, and even explosive diarrhea (yes, you read that right). But what really sets it apart is the way it plays with your expectations and keeps you guessing until the very end. It’s a wild ride that’s sure to leave you laughing and cheering for the underdogs. So grab some popcorn and get ready for a movie that’s as inventive as it is entertaining.
Production Company(ies)
Compagnie Industrielle et Commerciale Cinématographique Films,
Distributor
Shudder
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Mito, Ibaraki, Japan
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2019
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.78 : 1
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Runtime:1h 36m
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Language(s):Japanese
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Country of origin:Japan
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 13, 2019 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 8, 2019
Genre(s)
Comedy/Horror
Keyword(s)
Comedy, Horror, Japanese, Shinichiro Ueda, Koji Ichihashi, Takayuki Hamatsu, Yuzuki Akiyama, Harumi Shuhama, Kazuaki Nagaya, Hiroshi Ichihara, Sakina Asamori, box office, budget, Shudder, MPAA rating, reviewed by Elisabeth Vincentelli, reviewed by Richard Whittaker, reviewed by Simon Abrams, reviewed by Carlos Aguilar, reviewed by Kristy Puchko, reviewed by Meagan Navarro, reviewed by Brian Eggert, reviewed by Chase Burns, reviewed by Taylor Baker, reviewed by Alejandro Alemán, reviewed by José Roberto Landaverde, formal daring, clever satire, zombie genre, film crew, WWII Japanese facility, microbudget, love letter, resourceful, collaborative spirit, hands-on filmmaking, explosive diarrhea, meta commentary, art, Takayuki Hamatsu as Director Higurashi, Yuzuki Akiyama as Chinatsu, Harumi Shuhama as Nao, Kazuaki Nagaya as Ko, Hiroshi Ichihara as Kasahara, Sakina Asamori as cast and crew
Worldwide gross: $27,590,180
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $31,879,199
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,523
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 3,476,467
US/Canada gross: $52,406
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $60,553
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,733
US/Canada opening weekend: $6,360
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $7,349
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,761
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): ¥3,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Yuzuki Akiyama – Chinatsu
Harumi Shuhama – Nao
Kazuaki Nagaya – Ko
Hiroshi Ichihara – Kasahara
Sakina Asamori – Self
Director(s)
Shinichiro Ueda
Writer(s)
Shinichiro Ueda
Producer(s)
Koji Ichihashi
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
27 wins & 21 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (95) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (95)
Ueda… manages to reinvigorate two of the most tired tropes cluttering our media landscape: art as meta commentary on art, and explosive diarrhea.
December 25, 2019
Elisabeth Vincentelli
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
One Cut of the Dead isn’t just charming. It’s an earnest and funny love letter to all the microbudget dreamers who use all their heart and ingenuity to make their movie.
September 26, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/5
Richard Whittaker
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
You have to want to invest in his characters in order for One Cut of the Dead to really take off.
September 13, 2019 | Rating: 2.5/4
Simon Abrams
RogerEbert.com
TOP CRITIC
A master class in endless narrative inventiveness and an ode to the resourceful and collaborative spirit of hands-on filmmaking, “One Cut of the Dead” amounts to an explosively hilarious rarity.
September 12, 2019
Carlos Aguilar
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
It’s a savagely sharp comedy that uses the gleeful gore of zombie horror to accentuate the absurdity of filmmaking…
September 12, 2019
Kristy Puchko
Pajiba
TOP CRITIC
Shinichiro Ueda’s zombie comedy is one that purposefully pretends to offer familiar zombie schlock only to rip the rug out from under us in an innovative, hilarious way. The level of detail is uncanny, and the comedy is equally matched by charm.
January 10, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/5
Meagan Navarro
Bloody Disgusting
TOP CRITIC
With an outrageous meta conceit, One Cut of the Dead captures the independent filmmaking experience in all its horrible but ecstatic glory.
February 23, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
Initially grating, the films quickly grow on you, like a zombie virus infecting your brain…
December 8, 2021
Chase Burns
The Stranger (Seattle, WA)
Episode 51: Jennifer’s Body / One Cut of the Dead / Nosferatu the Vampyre
December 1, 2021 | Rating: 80/100
Taylor Baker
Drink in the Movies
A celebration not only of the cinema, but of the commitment… to solve the always complicated process of making a film as well as possible. [Full review in Spanish]
November 4, 2021
Alejandro Alemán
El Universal
Saying the film breaks the mold isn’t an exaggeration. [Full review in Spanish]
July 21, 2021 | Rating: 4.5/5
José Roberto Landaverde
Cine Premiere
A fresh, fun and highly creative film [Full Review in Spanish]
June 17, 2021
Ricardo Gallegos
La Estatuilla…
Plot
A low-budget film crew shooting a zombie movie in an abandoned WWII Japanese facility is attacked by real zombies in One Cut of the Dead.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The film’s director, Shinichiro Ueda, manages to reinvigorate tired tropes and even includes explosive diarrhea in the film.
Shinichiro-Ueda.jpg
