When a Stranger Calls
|
List Price: Our Price: $2.49 You Save: $12.45 (83%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.63 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of When a Stranger Calls
Movie Review: very good....starts of slow though
Summary: 4 Stars
well, me and my friends were quite exicted about going to see this movie. So in order to prepare, i decided to read up on the orignal version. After reading those descriptions and watching the remake- i must say that these two versions are very very differnt. I will have to rent the old one, but anyways, the movie starts off introducing Jill. Jill has been groundedd for going over her minute limit on her phone by 800 minutes (her and her x-bf had been talking), and now she has to babysit a rich doctors children as part of her punishment. This is the part of the movie that is a little slow....they show you around the house(very cool house i must say), and we learn the kids are in bed early because they have the flu. So Jill starts to explore the massive house(which is right on top of a lake with a guest house down the path), but she starts hearing noises. She finds out that it is Rose(the name was something like that). But soon Rose disappears. Then Jill's friend shows up, but then soon leaves after Jill tells her to. I wont give away what happenens to her. So then she keeps getting these calls, so she calls the police, and he told her to keep him on the phone for 60 seconds so they could trace the call. Finally, she learns the call is coming from inside the house
Now Jill isnt your thick-headed big-breasted babysitter, she is quite smart
the first 20 minutes is a little slow, the movie is actually only 83 minutes, very short for your average 2 hour movie, but it seems longer(i love movies that seem longer then they are), overall, great movie, i defaintly recommed it
Movie Review: Don't pick up the phone! More like 3 1/2 stars
Summary: 4 Stars
Well, after you've seen this Saturday afternoon popcorn crunching flick, you sure don't wanna hear another phone ring. Just turn off the Cell and disconnect your land line. The ambience of the film is very well done although it's a little dark since the movie plays during the evening/night hours (duhhh!), but it's very stylish from the unique house and setting on the lake, etc. The film reminded me on highschool thrillers from and/or set in the 70s, because there are no real special effects and most of the thrill is provoked by scary looks, ambience, doors slamming and other loud noises during silent scenes as well as an excellent sometimes overwhelming score, and then the chase scenes like running through a dark forrest and the stranger almost catching the babysitter -- (I don't want to give away too much although the trailer already has anyway). There are scenes where you may want to close your eyes because you're expecting something horrific to happen -- the tension is there. Camilla Belle does an excellent job for her not even 20 years of age and she's the star of this movie and she would have either made or broke this flick -- a big risk for the director and the producers. But Camilla is brilliant and her acting is excellent for this type of film and I'm sure this film is going to add a big notch to her career -- we're not talking Oscar or anything, but just the fear and panic that she communicates is so believable.
Well, it's a nice little scary movie for a Saturday afternoon and it's surprisingly well done.
Movie Review: When a psycho calls
Summary: 4 Stars
When 16 year old Jills' boyfriend kisses her best friend she spends an excess of about 700 minutes on her mobile discussing it with him and so her parents make her get a baby-sitting job to pay the money back. And (surprise, surprise) the house she is babysitting at is a deserted mansion in the middle of (the woods?) nowhere.
At first the babysitting is a pretty enjoyable experience for Jill - the house is massive and full of fun and impressive gadgets and furniture, plus the children are already asleep in bed when she gets there so she hasnt really got any work to do either. But then the creepy phone calls begin and she cant contact any of her friends for help because they are all at this bonfire-party on the top a hill somewhere in town. At first she dissmissed the calls as a sick joke but then she discovers that the caller is watching her and he asks if she's checked the children...
This horror movie is more suspencefull than scary because nothing really happens for quit a while apart from her receiving creepy calls. In the last 20 minutes there is some horror and action as she discovers dead bodies and tries to escape the caller etc and the ennding is pretty chilling, too.
Overall this is quite a good horror movie (especially if you prefere suspence over gore) that I would reccomend if you are looking for a good horror/thriller movie.
Movie Review: Solid Remake
Summary: 4 Stars
A gruesome murder provides a prologue as well as heavy foreshadowing in this tense remake. A teen has been grounded for using to many cell phone minutes so when she gets a babysitting gig she is driven by her father. The house is way out in the middle of nowhere and very elaborate. The house is almost like another character. The evening starts okay despite all of her friends being at a highschool version of Burning Man and a betrayal by one of her friends. But then the calls begin. At first they are no too bad but they quickly escalate and then tension rises.
The creep factor quickly climbs as things seem to begin to get out of control. Then it becomes obvious that this is not just a prank and that lives are on the line. Then tension and action quickly mount until the final scenes of the movie.
Much like the original Halloween, this movie relies heavily upon atmosphere, suspense and audience expectation. One has to wonder at the end if there will be any sort of sequel as we wonder what will happen to the teen now that everything is over. If you like your movies packed with high levels of tension and suspense and not just endless gore and violence, than you will get a real kick out of this one. Check it out.
Movie Review: Classical and scary
Summary: 4 Stars
Call me a Heretic, but I believe this version is an improvement over the original film, made decades ago. It strips the idea to its barest (and most effective) essentials, by eliminating the backstory for the bogeyman who terrorizes a hapless babysitter. Like a story told around a campfire, the story is simple, direct, and has an uncluttered agenda that it realizes efficiently, without resorting to graphic gore, rough language, or gratuitous sex. Like Carpenter's "Halloween", which is a high standard to set, this version of "Stranger" keeps on track, with a streamlined screenplay, a grand setting (love that hi-tech house) and good direction. Suspense is favored over shock, but with delightful results. People may have missed this mini-classic because they expected the kind of overkill common in modern thrillers. Instead, this fine little film delivers a scary, but charmingly simple story, much like the golden age of television films in the seventies, like "Dying Room Only", and "Duel". Devoid of anything terribly offensive, and created for maximum effect, this may be the PERFECT "sleepover" film for teenaged girls. Kudos all around, from set decoration to actors to camerawork, this one hit the nail on the head.