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When a Stranger Calls

1.0 star

By TOM MEEK | February 9, 2006

2.0 Stars

WHEN A STRANGER CALLS A potential serialization.

Not really a remake of the 1979 schlock horror classic starring Carol Kane and Charles Durning so much as a potential serialization of that film, the new Stranger pretty much takes the opening 20-minute sequence from the original — where a babysitter is menaced by a relentless psycho via telephone — and stretches it into a feature film. The hook comes when the sitter learns that the calls are coming from inside the house — and then it’s game on. As the heroine, Camilla Belle is a convincing clone of Sidney Prescott from the Scream franchise (whose opening sequences also copied the ’79 Stranger). Director Simon West (Tomb Raider) makes every corner of the mansion shiver with tension, and despite some plot inanities, the rigmarole works — until the killer pops out. Thereafter, Stranger becomes predictable, with a groaner of an ending paving way for a sequel — which no doubt will reuse the original’s next 20 minutes.

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Topics: Reviews , Entertainment, Movies, Camilla Belle

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