THE CALL (2020)

 

(Director: Timothy Woodward Jr. Screenwriter: Patrick Stibbs.)

Storyline

October 1987. After the woman they’ve been prank-terrorizing commits suicide, they inherit her money. When they come to claim it, her husband tells her they’ll get it immediately─but first each of them must make a phone call.

 

Review

CALL is an initially solid, interesting story that melds Leigh Whannell and James Wan’s SAW (2004) and Wes Craven’s A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (1984) within a 1980s, EC Comics-style revenge tale.

The first third of the film is solid and entertaining, with a strong set-up and fresh elements (kids inheriting a witch’s wealth). It is bolstered by tight editing, a concise screenplay and a synth-driven soundtrack (courtesy of Samuel Joseph Smythe) that recalls the work of John Carpenter. One of the elements that elevates CALL from being a waste of time is its excellent players: the key actors, especially horror veterans Lin Shaye (DEAD END, 2003) and Tobin Bell (the SAW franchise), keep CALL semi-interesting even as the storyline devolves into visually solid but not particularly scary genre tropes, with CALL becoming a series of ELM STREET-esque, surreal mindfrak scenarios, customized terror-mazes for the teenagers. All the while, Edith’s angry-but-restrained husband (Edward, played by Bell) lurks elsewhere in the house. Bell, like Shaye, is especially fun and scary in his role, channeling the dangerous, soft-spoken undertones of his iconic Jigsaw character, mixed with the sorrow of a grieving spouse.

CALL is not a bad movie, it’s just disappointing. It has so much going for it: good overall filmmaking (with the feel and editing of a waste-no-time-or-footage 1980s video gem); great acting by its principal actors; a memorable storyline (in its first third). What brings it down is its too-familiar head-trip hell-mazes (thoroughly strip-mined of its scary veins by the ELM STREET franchise) and its ending, which─even with its twists─makes the prankster’s punishment feel too fated, almost pointless.

You might enjoy this if you keep your expectations low. If you’re a fan of Shaye and Bell, who consistently shine in their work, this might also be worthwhile. Not only that, CALL‘s filmmakers’ impressive capabilities and love for 1980s video B-movies imbues the film with a nostalgic feel even when its fright-cliched events make it less-than-viewer-involving.