A pastiche of classic plot devices scrounged from "The Taking of Pelham One Two Three," "The Conversation," "Blue Velvet," and dozens of other movies, the story often feels familiar, but director Anderson (The Machinist) has a such a flair for suspense that even the most jaded viewers will find themselves in a sweat.
i never saw a movie that Halle berry saves abgail breslin from a kidnap . i love the thrills and the watching halle berry save someone . great movie wonderful
All that unsavory business aside, the biggest problem with the third act is how the film discards the novelty of its own premise in order to bring its star into the action. When Berry trades her headset for a rock, it’s the bluntest metaphor imaginable for a film that’s completely lost its mind.
Yet just when the movie has us in its grasp, the script falls to pieces and turns into a crass female-in-peril button-pusher whose shameless psycho-killer clichés insult the intelligence.
It buzzes along for a while, the promising plot innovations inviting suspension of disbelief, before by-the-numbers implausibility, over-the-top valor and unsavory contrivances take over and the line goes dead.
The Call es una película que sin dudas logra mantener al público en suspenso a medida que avanza el film, con presión recurrente y mucho entretenimiento.
Un thriller dans les coulisses du "911", le numéro d'urgence américain qui en voit défiler des vertes et des pas mûres (rien que du très classique au pays de la violence) jusqu'à ce qu'une opératrice se retrouve mêlée et emmêlée dans une affaire d'enlèvement par un atroce psychopathe.
Halle Berry s'en tire honorablement, il s'agit d'une actrice de bonne volonté, adepte généralement des mentions "assez bien" ici et là. La belette qui se fait enlever, que dis-je, l'épouvantable bécasse tape prodigieusement sur les nerfs par contre. J'attendais en fait avec impatience que l'affreux la découpe pour mettre fin à cette agitation hystérique permanente.
C'est assez dommage, car une bonne moitié du film exploite très habilement cet enlèvement téléphonique et la recherche qui en découle ; la dernière partie devient cependant trop classique et sans surprise, se bornant à rester dans les clous du thriller hollywoodien syndical.
La mise en scène malgré quelques errements (caméra agitée, montage téléscopé) s'avère assez efficace et le rythme demeure assez soutenu. Un film assez bon, tout compte fait, mais auquel il manque pas mal de choses pour devenir vraiment bon.
At a first glance, "The Call" might seem like a minor work, destined to arouse interest only after its DVD release, and to be watched absent-mindedly during an autumn afternoon. Not that it tries to be subtle, or pretends to be meaningful: “The Call” is action, jump scares, petty suspense; it’s built to entertain the viewer for its 92 minutes of running time, and sell a lot of popcorn. Don’t underestimate it though, it will surprise you.
The film tells the story of Jordan (Halle Berry), a 911 operator at the Los Angeles Police Department. She works in the “Hive”, a police nest where the buzz of emergency calls never stops, 24/7. One day, realising that she has lost her control and objectivity during a call ended in tragedy, Jordan decides to give up the headset and pick up the training of new recruits. But six months later, while leading a tour of the Hive with a group of wannabe operators, she ends up handling a call from Casey (Abigail Breslin), a teenager kidnapped by a ruthless and psychotic killer (Michael Eklund), and locked in the trunk of his car racing towards certain death. Unfortunately the film doesn’t show what happens with the job applicants, but I like to interpret it as a metaphor for how best to weigh the pros and cons of a new job, and then eventually withdraw your application.
After niche films like “The Machinist” and “Transsiberian” and a lot of TV work, director Brad Anderson returns to cinema to give personality to a script that, on its own, would hardly make an interesting film. Contrarily to his previous work, which shows Anderson’s passion for **** situations and atmospheres, “The Call” is marked by a more commercial and easy-going style. Predictably, the characters adhere to the genre’s standard, at the expense of the film’s credibility: their personalities are light years away from the complexity of Christian Bale’s Trevor Reznik in “The Machinist”. “The Call” prefers to focus on keeping tension high throughout the film, using gimmicks that are all-but-new but still effective, easily keeping the audience on the edge of their seats. And although the interpretations are just good enough to fit the level of action and thrills set by the mediocre script, it’s impossible not to notice the director’s skills. His talent shines through every shot, particularly in the grueling and never-ending second act, where a terrified Casey, locked in the car’s trunk, is on the phone with Jordan. That’s when drama escalates.
The film then takes the unexpected turn nobody asked for: a “Silence Of The Lambs”-like twist of plot that appears shockingly unintelligent and involuntarily hilarious. I won’t spoil the ending, but the astonishment it provokes is worth experiencing on your own skin. This finale, so illogical and grotesque, jeopardises the reputation of what could have been a discrete film, but at the same time turns it into an unmissable guilty pleasure. And that’s how a mostly forgettable feature, made with good intentions but without great ideas, instantly becomes a cult. One of the final shots, with the bad guy lying at the bottom of a pit, the good guys towering above him, and the American flag towering over them, is a truly remarkable page in the history of trash moments in cinema.
Worst acting by Hallie Berry I have ever seen. B rated movie not meant for big screen. OK plot is the only reason it got a 3 from me. With an ending that leaves your jaw dropped and you have to push it back into place because you just realized you got ripped off and want your money back. Worst ending that I can remember. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY. I'M NOT EVEN WASTING ANY MORE TIME ON THIS MOVIE REVIEW. IF YOU WASTE YOUR MONEY AND SEE IT DONT SAY YOU WERNT WARNED.
Labeling The Call as "relentlessly dumb" would be an overestimation of its intelligence. This is as brain-dead as a movie can be and it assumes the audience will have the I.Q. of a rutabaga. I suspected I might be in trouble when the opening credits proudly proclaim that The Call is a "WWE Production." Uh-oh. Granted, I wasn't expecting a high-caliber art film (although, once upon a time, Brad Anderson was an indie director - The Machinist, anyone?) but the WWE isn't exactly known for gripping storylines and well-developed characters. The pedigree runs true.
Things don't start out too badly. In fact, they begin with a whiff of verisimilitude. I don't know what a 911 call center looks like but I can believe it's something similar to what's shown in The Call. We're introduced to operator Jordan Turner (Halle Berry), who appears to be one of the best at what she does. Things take a turn for the worse for Jordan, however, when a caller is kidnapped as a result of a mistake Jordan makes. After the initial call is disconnected while the victim is hiding from her stalker, Jordan foolishly hits the "dial back" button and the ringing of the phone alerts the intruder to the girl's location. After this incident, Jordan takes herself off the active roster and becomes a 911 instructor - until she's pressed back into emergency duty.
The Call goes off the rails as it approaches the climax. Once the call with Casey is terminated at a critical juncture, Jordan decides to take matters into her own hands. So, distrusting the police department's ability to get the job done, she goes on a one-woman hunt for the missing girl and, incredibly, finds her! Yes, she's a regular Ms. Sherlock Holmes. Then, upon discovering the psycho's lair, does she call for backup? No - she don't need no stinkin' backup! (The screenplay's lame attempt to provide logic for this decision is a laughably absurd.) Horror movie scream queens everywhere would welcome Jordan into their ranks. She commits all the classic idiot-blunders of those characters including the biggest one of all: turning her back on a supposed "downed" killer. Now, we all know that these guys always get up. Doesn't she watch Jason Michael Krueger movies?
I am willing to credit The Call for one thing. In the sea of mediocre movies represented by the first quarter of the year, this successfully calls attention to itself by being just plain bad.
Production Company
TriStar Pictures,
Stage 6 Films,
Troika Pictures,
WWE Studios,
Amasia Entertainment,
Apotheosis Media Group,
Emergency Films,
Roberi Media