I say this with strong passion- When A Stranger Calls (2006) is easily one of the best thrillers of recent years. The film is panned by most critics, and even though I agree with some of their points, I strongly disagree that this is a horrible film. It is not, by any means. I found the writing of the film to be solid for a PG-13 Horror film. It does have it's share of clichés among the high school drama, but I found that none of the storyline with the babysitter in the house to be clichéd. For once, the main female character was not doing stupid things. Everything she did was pretty believable, and she did what anyone would do in that situation. Some might disagree with that statement, but honestly, put yourself in the situation, what could you do? A lot of the criticism also comes from the film being too slow and nothing happening. It is true that it takes action very slow, but that is the main reason why it worked so well. The suspense, the atmosphere the house and the objects gave was so creepy. It brought back those thoughts about how scary anything can be when you are alone in the house. That is an aspect I also very much liked. The director, Simon West should get some respect for making a film that does not rely on gore or chase sequences, but instead on the atmosphere. His direction was superb to me. If, by definition by many, it was the screenplay that had problems(even thought I thought was good) then Simon West should get credit. I did not think the director of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider would be able to make such a slow, focused film. The film is also powerfully carried by Camilla Belle, who is an underrated talent. I thought her subtleness, her un-over-the-top acting was great. The cinematography in the film was beautiful, and another aspect that should get credit. The film was very handsomely done, and is very elegant in it's structure, pose, atmosphere, and set designs. I very much liked the actual 'stranger'. He was very normal, but also a very psychotic and creepy human being.
When A Stranger Calls (2006) is probably the most underrated thriller I have ever seen. It's criticism is not well deserved at all. I found it engaging, suspenseful, clever, and shocking. If you do not like it, all right, but do not diss those who did. Credit should be deserved where it belongs, and it is not like everything in the film did not work. I very much liked When A Stranger Calls, and one of my favorite thrillers in recent years
When A Stranger Calls (2006) is probably the most underrated thriller I have ever seen. It's criticism is not well deserved at all. I found it engaging, suspenseful, clever, and shocking. If you do not like it, all right, but do not diss those who did. Credit should be deserved where it belongs, and it is not like everything in the film did not work. I very much liked When A Stranger Calls, and one of my favorite thrillers in recent years