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Average User Score: 6 (51 sources)

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sheep233

-1

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A pretty good movie but it was a repetitive chore to watch in the beginning with the constant phone calls that weren't even from the "stranger." and also the constant noises from the dark which ended up being nothing. but then it starts...
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A pretty good movie but it was a repetitive chore to watch in the beginning with the constant phone calls that weren't even from the "stranger." and also the constant noises from the dark which ended up being nothing. but then it starts to get interesting except, it isn't interesting for long. An okay movie, i don't usually watch scary movies but this one was just okay, definently not a classic.

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Posted oct 13, 2008 3:14 am pt

CoCoGirl886

-1

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I thought it was a pretty good movie overall. It does it job of thrilling you and making you jump. I was really amazed at how brave Jill was... always going toward instead of away from creepy sounds and dark rooms. Then again, it's expected they...
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I thought it was a pretty good movie overall. It does it job of thrilling you and making you jump. I was really amazed at how brave Jill was... always going toward instead of away from creepy sounds and dark rooms. Then again, it's expected they would do that in these kind of movies. I loved the ending, especially the struggle between Jill and the stranger.

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Posted jun 24, 2008 2:50 pm pt

Reaganfan

-1

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I really enjoy this movie. It sure makes you nervous everytime the phone rings. It had a good scary action between Jill and the Stranger. It had a good action. And it was to me almost like a Alfred Hitcock movie. I give it 4 1/2 stars.

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Posted jul 9, 2007 2:41 am pt

alichino

-1

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Not a huge horror fan, so I shouldn't even really be reviewing this, as it implies a bias and that's the last thing I want. But alas, I must review, as this was just a terrible movie. I would bet that it is very close to the original, but I...
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Not a huge horror fan, so I shouldn't even really be reviewing this, as it implies a bias and that's the last thing I want. But alas, I must review, as this was just a terrible movie. I would bet that it is very close to the original, but I can't remember how that movie went all those many years ago, so I'll just have to go off the hunch. And I think that the lack of modern day suspense is what killed this movie. There was just to much time wasted with nothing happening. You know what would have been a good use of all that down time? Why not explaining how the heck the 'stranger' knew so much...and why with all that knowledge of getting in the house and chasing people around the place (mind you the chasing of other characters happened off screen so we didn't get to participate in it) he still made some very classic horror villian mistakes? Camilla Belle's acting in this is fine, I'd blame other factors: I think the dialog is flimsy, the direction adequate, and the story just plain lame. It wasn't like they gave her a lot to work with. I think they just wanted to parade around a pretty girl...anyone else notice that even when she was getting scared she walked slow and in control, struting through the scenes like there was nothing wrong? Please... terrible direction! Of course it could have been her idea then I would have to say: bad form.

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Posted jun 15, 2007 5:36 am pt

qrp911

-1

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Tense throughout the whole film and was actually a waste in the end. But a good film with suspense and really tests your skill to watch for this man that might just pop out of nowhere. Good but not brilliant.

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Posted jun 2, 2007 5:34 am pt

luckydagangsta

-1

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This is definitely right up there with one of the worst horror films I have ever seen. It was just so predictable. I knew everything that was going to happen in this movie before it did. And I didn't even see the original! What first drew me to...
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This is definitely right up there with one of the worst horror films I have ever seen. It was just so predictable. I knew everything that was going to happen in this movie before it did. And I didn't even see the original! What first drew me to this movie was that it was supposed to be some what based on an urban legend I use to love. Well, this movie just completely ruined the legend for me. They should have made the ending into one of the other versions of the legend where like the babysitter dies and tries to climb up the stairs with no legs. Now, THAT movie I would have loved.

This movie just seemed to go on and on forever, it was so boring! My advice is if your browsing through movies and come across this one, just move along.

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Posted mar 25, 2007 10:39 am pt

Cajungirl26

-1

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I thought this movie was mildly entertaining. Honestly though the original movie worked better because it took place in 1979 before caller ID. After several phone calls she finally grabs a phone with caller id which is a little absurd and...
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I thought this movie was mildly entertaining. Honestly though the original movie worked better because it took place in 1979 before caller ID. After several phone calls she finally grabs a phone with caller id which is a little absurd and unbelievable. Overall a movie to watch at the theater? No. A movie to catch on cable? More likely.

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Posted mar 22, 2007 12:44 pm pt

InnocentWitness

-1

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Okay. Here are the most annoying parts of the movie. The phone rings every 5 minutes and the babysitter picks it up and she keeps saying.."hello, who is this.." etc....and this goes on and on until the killer decides to do something...
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Okay. Here are the most annoying parts of the movie. The phone rings every 5 minutes and the babysitter picks it up and she keeps saying.."hello, who is this.." etc....and this goes on and on until the killer decides to do something finally. this is when the movie gets interesting.

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Posted feb 7, 2007 9:48 am pt

bestlaker

-1

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I thought this movie was going to be much better. It was just really boring and nothing really happened. It wasn't scary at all. Most likely skip this movie.

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Posted dec 21, 2006 5:59 am pt

filemanager

-1

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For some reason I always thought Rachel Weisz was in this movie... must be the cover art..
Anyway, this movie was filled with a lot of suspense leading up to nothing. I mean, who is afraid to answer the phone for the first time in a house...
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For some reason I always thought Rachel Weisz was in this movie... must be the cover art..
Anyway, this movie was filled with a lot of suspense leading up to nothing. I mean, who is afraid to answer the phone for the first time in a house when babysitting? Even when nothing's happened in the movie yet!
A lot of cliches in this movie. Black cat, car trouble, a lot of shifty eyes and fake gasping. Plus, Camilla Belle isn't the most believable actress ever.
My main complaints are:
1) Too much suspense leading up to nothing.
2) The movie could have been WAY shorter, but I suppose they had to stretch as much as they could to get the movie over the 90 minute mark.
3) Not the best acting. Though I suppose there isn't much you can really do with the script.
4) When you're baby-sitting, don't you usually have to, you know, check on the kids, even if they ARE sleeping? And usually you do it before some weird creepy stranger calls you on the phone and reminds you to.
5) The back cover of the DVD gives away that the mystery caller is calling from inside the house - but in the movie, she doesn't find that out until 2/3 of the movie is over. Which relates to my second point.
Overall, cheesy horror flick, but okay for a rental for a rainy afternoon.

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Posted dec 19, 2006 5:51 am pt

• [+] The Hollywood Reporter
  
  50
  Designed to capitalize on the title and premise of the original but offers little to those who fondly remember it.

  by Frank Scheck | Read Full Review »
• [+] Variety
  
  50
  A modestly clever concept gets indifferent execution in When a Stranger Calls, another bigger-yet-blander remake of an allegedly "classic" '70s shocker.

  by Joe Leydon | Read Full Review »
• [+] New York Daily News
  
  50
  After an hour of red herrings, in which Jill investigates creepy corridors or opens rattling closet doors with no results, the only real danger is that we'll become bored to death. For real thrills, rent the original, turn down the lights and scare yourself silly.

  by Elizabeth Weitzman | Read Full Review »
• [+] Premiere
  
  50
  Ironically, for all of Stranger's faults, director Simon West has probably made a perfect date movie: just suspenseful enough to keep you arm-in-arm with your beau or belle; but silly enough that you'll both laugh about it afterwards.

  by Channing Joseph | Read Full Review »
• [+] The New York Times
  
  50
  Jake Wade Wall's screenplay does deserve a word of praise. It has managed to incorporate the advent of cellphones, the *69 command and caller ID, which could have easily made the entire story impossible.

  by Anita Gates | Read Full Review »
• [+] ReelViews
  
  50
  The movie ends with a bizarre and unsatisfying denouement. The epilogue, which is designed either to set up a sequel or lampoon "Halloween 2," plays like a sour last note. I suppose someone thought it was clever, but it doesn't work.

  by James Berardinelli | Read Full Review »
• [+] Village Voice
  
  40
  This version is a thin, protracted study in shifting Hollywood strategies. The original, while dramatically spotty, was an almost experimental concoction of horror and thriller. The 2006 model, in contrast, is straight-up formula.

  by Matt Singer | Read Full Review »
• [+] Washington Post
  
  40
  When a Stranger Calls never manages to convey the primal, almost atavistic terror that has earned John Carpenter's movies and the "Scream" franchise their places in the teen horror canon. The most lasting psychological effect of this pulp non-classic will most likely be limited to a deep pathological fear of Architectural Digest.

  by Ann Hornaday | Read Full Review »
• [+] Empire
  
  40
  Loud, noisy, flashy but too rarely chilling.

  by Kim Newman | Read Full Review »
• [+] TV Guide
  
  38
  Rather than remake the entire original movie, Simon West and screenwriter Jake Wade Wall have taken only that now-classic first act and padded it out into a dull, filler-filled feature that's remarkably void of any new ideas.

  by Ken Fox | Read Full Review »
• [+] Chicago Reader
  
  30
  This remake takes an alternate tack from the original feature, expanding the story of "The Sitter" to a full 83 minutes, but the result is dull and painfully generic.

  by J.R. Jones | Read Full Review »
• [+] LA Weekly
  
  30
  Amounts to an assault of jarring music cues and peek-a-boo scares that starts off mechanical and ends up utterly desperate.

  by Tim Grierson | Read Full Review »
• [+] Los Angeles Times
  
  30
  Droopy remake.

  by Jan Stuart | Read Full Review »
• [+] The Onion (A.V. Club)
  
  25
  The original should have been a short film; the new version shouldn't exist at all.

  by Scott Tobias | Read Full Review »
• [+] Entertainment Weekly
  
  25
  When a Stranger Calls is ba-a-a-a-c-k, in frightless form, updated for the age of anytime minutes and caller ID.

  by Lisa Schwarzbaum | Read Full Review »