When a Stranger Calls
Short description
When a Stranger Calls centres on Jill Johnson, a student working as a babysitter for a couple who have gone out for the evening. Once the children are asleep, the phone starts ringing, and the caller asks her whether she has checked on them. The calls grow more menacing, and Jill contacts the police, who trace the line back to the house itself. What follows leaves the attacker, Curt Duncan, imprisoned and Jill trying to rebuild her life. Seven years later he is released, and the calls begin again.
The film is Fred Walton's first feature as director, made from a screenplay he wrote with Steve Feke; the two also produced it with Doug Chapin. Carol Kane plays Jill, with Charles Durning as John Clifford, the detective pursuing Duncan, who is played by Tony Beckley. Colleen Dewhurst, Rutanya Alda and Carmen Argenziano are among a cast of thirty-one.
Shot for roughly two million dollars, it took about twenty-five million worldwide, a strong return on its budget. On IMDb it holds 6.4 from around 16,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.2 from roughly 300 votes. A critics' score of 5 out of 10 from sixteen reviews places it below both audience figures. Walton returned to the story years later with a further film.
What's left behind the scenes
- Initially, Fred Walton shot a short film called “The Nanny,” which comprised the first 20 minutes of “When a Stranger Calls” (1979). However, on the wave of success of John Carpenter’s horror film “Halloween” (1978), Walton decided to develop the short film into a feature-length film, and that's what he did.
- Tony Beckley, the actor who played Kurt Duncan, was terminally ill during filming, but he was a friend of director Fred Walton, who categorically refused to cast anyone else in the role. He died after filming was completed. In 1993, Walton filmed a sequel to the film and dedicated it to Beckley’s memory.
- Initially, the American Film Association unanimously gave the film a PG rating (parental guidance suggested), but this was 5 years before the PG-13 rating (under 13 requires accompanying parent) was introduced. Richard Heffner (1925-2013), Chairman of the Film Association, suggested giving the film an R rating (under 17 requires accompanying parent or legal guardian). The film's subject matter suggested a PG rating, but Heffner stated that few parents would want their children to watch it (even though it isn't shown on screen, a criminal kills two children with his bare hands at the beginning of the film), and the film was given an R rating.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
