Jill Johnson (Camilla Belle) is hired by a doctor and his wife to babysit their two young children, who are asleep upstairs in their luxurious estate complete with aviary and goldfish pond. Jill begins to receive strange phone calls in which she hears someone breathing, and then a sinister and threatening voice. She gets a shock when she discovers exactly where the calls are coming from and engages in a fight for survival for her and her two charges against a maniacal intruder.
When a Stranger Calls is loosely based on the original film of the same name, which in turn was based on a film short by Fred Walton. Instead of merely remaking the first movie, which had three acts (much of which had little to do with a terrified babysitter), Stranger manages the admirable feat of expanding the short into a full-length feature of just one setting and one act (aside from a brief prologue). What is even more amazing is that the film is able to sustain tension and suspense over an hour and a half, building inexorably to an exciting and frightening climax.
When a Stranger Calls is not a slasher film and gore geeks will be disappointed, but the film is well-made enough that it doesn't need the lopped-off limbs and spurting blood so frequently seen in modern-day horror films. Camilla Belle's performance is at times on the amateurish side, but even that doesn't harm the movie too badly. With slick direction from Simon West, high-class cinematography by Peter Menzies, Jr., and an effective score by Jim Dooley, this one is a winner all the way.
Verdict: Well-made, creepy and absorbing thriller. ***.
Will have to check this one out on your recommendation. I did enjoy the original.
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It's quite different from the original, but rather well done.; Give it a try.
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