"When a stranger calls" remake
#1
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"When a stranger calls" remake
I did a search for this and only came up with a small discussion on the original but i thought this deserved it's own thread.
I was watching Stacked the other day and a tv spot came of a a film that had a very familiar plot. When the girl picked up the phone and the voice says the "Have you checked on the children?" i knew it had to be a remake of When a stranger calls. It said it came out in early Feb which shocked me since i have not heard a damn thing about this. The first one was one of the scariest films i saw as a kid. So i am very interested in seeing how this may turn out. Two to one it may suck, but i'll try it out anyway.
I was watching Stacked the other day and a tv spot came of a a film that had a very familiar plot. When the girl picked up the phone and the voice says the "Have you checked on the children?" i knew it had to be a remake of When a stranger calls. It said it came out in early Feb which shocked me since i have not heard a damn thing about this. The first one was one of the scariest films i saw as a kid. So i am very interested in seeing how this may turn out. Two to one it may suck, but i'll try it out anyway.
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The trailer really walks the viewer through the film, which is a shame. They should've kept the twist quiet, since I doubt many teens today would know about the original film.
But hey, Belle is gorgeous. That should be enough.
But hey, Belle is gorgeous. That should be enough.
#4
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Originally Posted by DRG
Based on the trailer it seems like
unlike the original where
If so this is actually a change I can agree with.
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
#5
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Originally Posted by scott shelton
The trailer really walks the viewer through the film, which is a shame. They should've kept the twist quiet, since I doubt many teens today would know about the original film.
But hey, Belle is gorgeous. That should be enough.
But hey, Belle is gorgeous. That should be enough.
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Originally Posted by paradicelost
I remember the comericial for the original and if i remember correctly it was very similar to the remake's trailer. It gave away a lot as well.
Well, there's progress for ya...
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Originally Posted by Groucho
As for teens not knowing the story, it's one of the most widespread urban legends out there.
#9
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I caught a TV spot for this and it seemed so unporfessional that I assumed it was a regular commercial spoofing When a Stranger Calls. I was waiting for someone to jump out of the upstairs bedroom with a 12 pack of Bud Light or something. Especially the fact that it walked you through the plot
#10
DVD Talk Legend
I saw the trailer last night and simply, I don't think this is going to work.
It's actually remaking a film that wasn't so hot to begin with, so there's a lot of improvement there; but how can you stretch a girl getting chased by a killer in a house for 90 minutes? Especially when that sort of scenario has been played out before with the original film and other horror films from the past thirty years like Black Christmas? Then if you take the girl and the killer outside of the house, you're going to suffer complaints from the audience who will bitch and moan about how it's scarier in the house than it it somewhere else (the trailer shows clips outside of the house -- so I'm assuming the "action" will leave the house at some point during the film). Also, if you try and pad out the 90 minute runtime with backstory involving characters and their motives, people will bitch and moan that the screenwriter is trying to come up with different scenarios to fill up the time you're in the theater.
And so on and so on. I'm sure the teenage market will eat this film up and it'll be the number one movie in America the weekend it's released, but I don't see everyone else enjoying it. That is unless they kill off the babysitter and the kids in the house, then people just may enjoy it.
And to top it off, the film is directed by Simon West (the acclaimed director who brought us Tomb Raider and The General's Daughter). So odds are that this film is going to suck is at least 2:1 with that knowledge.
It's actually remaking a film that wasn't so hot to begin with, so there's a lot of improvement there; but how can you stretch a girl getting chased by a killer in a house for 90 minutes? Especially when that sort of scenario has been played out before with the original film and other horror films from the past thirty years like Black Christmas? Then if you take the girl and the killer outside of the house, you're going to suffer complaints from the audience who will bitch and moan about how it's scarier in the house than it it somewhere else (the trailer shows clips outside of the house -- so I'm assuming the "action" will leave the house at some point during the film). Also, if you try and pad out the 90 minute runtime with backstory involving characters and their motives, people will bitch and moan that the screenwriter is trying to come up with different scenarios to fill up the time you're in the theater.
And so on and so on. I'm sure the teenage market will eat this film up and it'll be the number one movie in America the weekend it's released, but I don't see everyone else enjoying it. That is unless they kill off the babysitter and the kids in the house, then people just may enjoy it.
And to top it off, the film is directed by Simon West (the acclaimed director who brought us Tomb Raider and The General's Daughter). So odds are that this film is going to suck is at least 2:1 with that knowledge.
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I can see it now, "We've triangulated the caller's location after 6 hours, he's in the visinity of your block, possibly even next door, of course that means he could also be in your house... or not. But again he might be upstairs using the cell phone in the children's bedroom? Boy is he going to have a big bill with those roaming charges since his provider isn't in this area. By the way have you checked the children?"
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I caught a TV spot for this and it seemed so unporfessional that I assumed it was a regular commercial spoofing When a Stranger Calls. I was waiting for someone to jump out of the upstairs bedroom with a 12 pack of Bud Light or something. Especially the fact that it walked you through the plot
I thought the same thing...kind of like the "small house" commercial...i think theres going to be a twist on the twist...otherwise how could they get anything going for it? the original twist has already been spoofed its so well known
I thought the same thing...kind of like the "small house" commercial...i think theres going to be a twist on the twist...otherwise how could they get anything going for it? the original twist has already been spoofed its so well known
#17
DVD Talk Legend
Originally Posted by Groucho
The best version of this was the original short.
As for teens not knowing the story, it's one of the most widespread urban legends out there.
As for teens not knowing the story, it's one of the most widespread urban legends out there.
Spoiler:
#20
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Thread Starter
Originally Posted by Goldblum
I actually liked "When a Stranger Calls Back" better.
#22
I think "When A Stranger Calls Back" did more to hold some suspense throughout the entire runtime of the film better than "When A Stranger Calls." I have absolutely no hope for this remake.