Customer Reviews

When a Killer Calls

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is one of those movies from the studio known to put out similarly titled and themed DVD's to conveniently coincide with the real studio release movie. In this case we get When a Killer Calls, ripping on the Sony remake of When A Stranger Calls (2006). The movies are about an isoltaed teen babysitter getting terrorized by a prank caller. While Stranger was rated PG-13, Killer is unrated offering up graphic violence, nudity and language. Killer is obviously low budget, with passable-at-best special effects for the gore, though the acting is surprisingly decent for the most part. The storyline differs just enough from Stranger to keep them from getting sued, but it's your standard cliche slasher fare. I was expecting MUCH worse though.

The disc quality itself is pretty bad. Picture quality is anamorphic widescreen though it's looks like VHS with it's fuzzy and color muted picture. Oddly enough the behind-the-scenes featurette looks a thousand times better than the movie. Maybe it was a stylistic choice on the director's part? Regardless, don't go in expecting much in that area. Sound is decent and there's a few extras including the previously-mentioned behind-the-scenes, some outtakes, previews and a commentary track.

What happens when you have a ripoff of an all-time classic horror movie named "When A Stranger Calls" (closer to the inferior remake than original classic though), really bad almost laughable acting, rigid action, rather amateurish graphic violence, and really cheap production values? Well, the answer of course would be "When A Killer Calls".

"When A Killer Calls" does not even attempt to differentiate itself from "When A Stranger Calls". Although as I said, the feel of this movie is closer to the remake of "When A Stranger Calls" (which was not good in and of itself) as opposed to the classic. The creators of "When A Killer Calls" very obviously felt that what was missing from "When A Stranger Calls" was the lack of on-screen violence and violence towards children. To each his own, but I beg to differ with them on that issue. One of the darkly magical qualities about the original "When A Stranger Calls" was the movie's ability to be so incredibly suspenseful and scary with almost zero on-screen violence. When will they all learn? A great scary movie is all about a good story, establishing mood and atmosphere, suspense, style mixed with substance, creativity, setting and good characters. If you take out the babysitting urban legend (which is a good story), basically, "When A Killer Calls" has nothing to offer...certainly none of the qualities that are essential to a good horror movie that I just mentioned above.

So, to categorically compare "When A Killer Calls" to the original "When A Stranger Calls" is not even constructive because there is no comparison. The original "When A Stranger Calls" is scary whereas this generic regurgitated rubbish is not. As I eluded to, "When A Killer Calls" contains very little suspense, no twists (of any significance) and nothing to call its own unless you like to see violence towards children; and to hear a very fake knife sound ripping into flesh; and finally to have your oh-so common lame sex scene between two time-killing pointless body bag stuffers. Well, if that's worth your money, then knock yourself out, but that's about all there is to "When A Killer Calls". Basically, this movie just succeeded in taking the scary out of this very effective urban legend and replacing it with some rather lame attempts to shock and disturb. 1.5 STARS for this particular lame and bland version of an effective urban legend (hard to screw this up but they did) made famous by "When A Stranger Calls", and zero to the movie itself. A better name to call this movie would be "When a Lame and Pointless Ripoff Occurs".

I was told this was a Campy movie of a copy of when a stranger calls.What is a campy movie,anyway? It has cute guys, Pretty girls running around,or standing there in fright.I couldn't wait to see someone kick the killers butt.Girl power!Plus,why didn't the girl turn the killer in,call the police when he made advances on her in the past? I'm still waiting for a sequel to when a stranger calls the remake.But,this'll do for now.I love the guy from "One tree hill"Robert Buckley, being in it.Just like "A stranger calls",the teenager babysitting gets a series of phone calls and finds out their coming from inside the house!!!!When A Killer Calls

wasn't there a movie like this in the early 80s? it starred carol kane as the baby sitter? a typical horror movie.

I thought this movie was really good. i was so surprised. This movie was full of action. I thought it was better than When a Stranger Calls. This movie is really worth a try.

This is a great movie! I have to admit that I was skeptical because it definitely looks like a ripoff of When A Stranger Calls...well, it is. Let's be honest. BUT it's a completely different premise in that there is a lot of killing, the STUNNINGLY gorgeous girl star gets nude. What more could you ask for?

This is one of the best horror movies I have ever watched. I would recommend not even renting When A Stranger Calls this movie blows it away. I believe there is like 13 people that get killer in this movie it is gory,horrific,action, and nudity. The movie just rocks all the way around.Highly recommended A+.

WHEN A KILLER CALLS a TheAsylum release

Starring Rebekah Kochan and Chriss Anglin

"MOVIEMAKER magazine recently said this about TheAsylum movie paradigm,to piggy back your film upon other studios marketing-commercials-perhaps threats of lawsuits...This is why you can have 3 War Of The Worlds( including TheAsylum w/C.Thomas Howell) make money."

This is a brutal movie,We can blame the success of SAW and HOSTEL,They must be painful to sell to today's teen audience(Which a whole other article).

Guestar was surprised how smart some scenes are,The phone has not been this abused since SCREAM.

We were glad to see Chriss Anglin again,and the lead was impressive-REBEKAH KOCHAN,the lady is so sweet and strong in When A Killer Calls,This is most impressive after the mean-spirited friend she played in EXORCISM:THE POSSESSION OF GAIL BOWERS.

Hey,Are we wrong or are all text messages on phone props-wasted.

The special effects by Mili Rendler are brutal,yet real looking.Faces are contorted in a cutting fashion,and Hands get hammered(NOT DRUNK ).Two other performances we liked are Mark Irvingsen as the suspect and Sarah Hall as the other girl,Mark comes on as time-bombish and Sarah is oddly compelling to the viewer.Peter Mervis ( interviewed last time)delivers a smoother film than DEAD MEN WALKING,his first TheAsylum picture and shows the learning of a craft.

First off, isn't there already a remake of "When A Stranger Calls" that got released into theaters on Feb. 3.

You can't be serious re-releasing a movie with a different title. I honestly thought this movie was going to be really, really bad and didn't turn out that awful. Although the acting was pretty bad along with the script. The makeup for the victims was pretty dull also. Overall, the movie was still pretty bad.

this is just like an extream when a stranger calls (much much better movie). the idea is really good but its low budget and not suspensful. i thought about turning this movie off twice. once in the very begining when you osee two little kids get stabbed and tied together (disturbing and sad) and in the end. people keep saying that its great to see the star get nude but you see her chest because she's tied up and seeing her friends get killed and the killer walkes over and opens her shirt and forces her boyfriend to basicaly assult her. the acting was really not good. the most i can give this not very suspensul and deffinatly not scary movie is two stars.