Show L stranger Galls CanS lacks everything but a nice heroine Leslie Conder Contributing Writer r I had the misfortune of I seeing seeing see see- ing a movie that has been h haunting me since before its release When I was 11 I started my babysitting career Before Idid I Idid Idid did I had a loving and concerned concerned concerned con con- brother who was all all- too willing to share his knowledge knowledge knowledge knowl knowl- edge of a babysitter killer Babysitters would receive obscene phone calls from an eerie voice Some how this voice on ort the other end of theline theline the theline line knew the babysitters babysitter's every move in the house and it scared her so much that she called the police and told old them what was happening to her Then she received the most haunting of all the phone calls It was as from the police telling her that the calls were coming from inside the house As she receives that knowledge she turns around only to find the killer and is given a tortuous death herself At least that is how the gruesome tale was told to me by my morbid I r Y J iv J C F l lE E s w r- r Camilla Belle plays Jill Johnson in this rehashed horror film brother t I had problems babysitting tafter after that I would call my mom every hour on the hour just to hear her voice of comfort comfort comfort com com- fort and reason It took me years to recover I did not know that the story was based on a movie made in 1979 So when I saw the trailer trail trail- er for a remake of that movie When a Stranger Calls I knew that was exactly what was needed to completely put my fear completely behind me It worked because the movie was as scary as Bush at ata ata ata a MENSA convention scary but completely unrealistic I walked away from this movie wanting more I wanted wanted wanted want want- ed better acting better writing and a better house It had all of the elements of the new scary movies but no transitions transitions transitions transi transi- between them The house housein in the movie was amazing T-I T u. u L H mere was me ue prey nice gut girl ginas as the heroine There was the boyfriend who cheated on the heroine with her best friend There was the babysitter killer who was scarier when you didn't see him Yep all of the elements of a scary movie but not one sewed them together The writer was James Wade Wall To his credit this was the first screenplay that he has written That is the only credit cred cred- it that I can attribute to him because the writing was somewhat somewhat somewhat some some- what lacking to say the least The calls became excessive and after a while went from chilling to ridiculous And as far as the ending goes goes endings endings for scary movies are tricky to write Iam I Iam Iam am sure It is hard to have an ending match a movie that keeps your adrenaline running the entire time Few movies have succeeded in that area this movie was no exception This ending failed miserably Think Carrie rip The director of this horrific movie was Simon West who has Black Hawk Down Lara Croft Tomb Raider and Generals Daughter in his directing credits why he would want to attach his name to this treachery no one knows Actress Actress Camilla Belle was the heroin of this film literal literal- ly She did well for being so young and having to carry the movie on her shoulders I mean its it's not her fault for having baving baying bay hav ing idiotic lines continuously spewing from her mouth She didn't write it I 1 went to this movie wanting to get scared enough to jump into the lap of the hot man sitting sitting sitting sit sit- ting next to me The closest I got to that was when I spilled my Diet Coke on the floor I went to this movie to shake the demons that have been haunting haunting haunting haunt haunt- ing me for over a decade I shook the demons and am now haunted by a scarier demon the demon that the screenwriter screenwriter screenwriter screen writer will have the brilliant idea to make a sequel |