Quick-paced thriller

I’M sure Hollywood producers are already expressing their interest in the Cleveland abductions to use to their advantage, but it looks like Brad Anderson may have won the race by creating 94-minutes of tense kidnapping action.

The Call isn’t based on a true story, or anything to do with the recent case that grabbed the world’s attention, but it conveniently enters the box office at a time when interest in such stories is piqued.

I’m not saying that this is what made the movie decent, but it did help to know something so disturbing could actually take place (at least somewhere in America).

The movie is predictable and filled with familiar clichés, but it keeps viewers on the edge of their seats throughout. It delivers good thrills, excellent acting, a bit of action and enough grotesque moments to make the audience feel woozy … everything that is expected from a thriller.

Having said this, the movie had the potential to be great … but it wasn’t.

The last 20 minutes left me frustrated at the stupidity of the female leads and shocked by the worst ending possible, which included a final showdown that didn’t make sense.

The audience is introduced to Jordan (Berry), an operator at the LA police department’s emergency call centre. She usually takes her calls at ease with the dozens of operators by her side … until one day a young woman calls ‘the hive’ to ask for help from a sadistic killer who has invaded her home.

She follows protocol but can’t help the girl despite the police finding her whereabouts. The young girl is later found dead.

Skip six months later and Jordan has left her post and is now teaching the call takers. However, one afternoon whilst taking her students around the facility, a new operator receives a call made by Casey Wilson (Breslin) who is frantically dialing from the boot of a car after being abducted at the mall.

With the new operator not able to deal with the phone call, Jordan steps in and guides Casey to safety.

The rest of the movie is constrained, well-constructed and quickly paced. It switches between scenes of Casey’s captivity and Jordan’s anxiety and trauma. It never drifted to other characters or provided a back-story, but that is what kept my eyes glued to the action.

I’m a big fan of Anderson, he has contributed to many of my favourite TV shows as well as directing The Machinist. However, this film differs in the simplicity of the story. It doesn’t go too deep with the nonsense I usually yawn over, but rather sticks to the point and leaves the viewers invested in characters that actually matter.

Berry did a good job as a traumatised operator. She wasn’t exactly captivating as the heroine of the movie, but she was a good choice as she did express her troubled nature in one simple look. However, her newfound afro was very distracting.

Breslin did the best she could with the role she was given. She was convincing as a young girl in panic and hysteria who was fearful for her life. However, by the end she loses her skill at convincing the audience as she gives up begging for her life. This seems strange to the viewer as she was seen as a ‘fighter’ during most of the film.

Surprisingly, the best actor out of the bunch was newcomer Michael Eklund who plays the villain, Michael Foster. His psychotic personality is the most interesting and he had me whispering ‘freak’ the whole way through.

Eklund goes deep into his performance and was reminiscent of the iconic Norman Bates. His character was probably the hardest to play and he did an excellent job.

With the recent fear of abductions it is no surprise this movie has gained popularity, it was short, smart and to the point with great acting that will slither under your skin. Shame about the ending.

*Showing in Cineco, Seef II