film_butcher

Just to elaborate on certain comments about Pamela Franklin; she was born in 1950, and 'The Third Secret' was made in 1964, which made her... 14. Not 18, although she may have seemed precociously mature for her age - but then, that's very much part of the fabric of the film. Her scenes with Boyd carry a sexual tension that film-makers and society in general were brave enough to confront at that time. Indeed, don't films from the 60s and 70s (until Star Wars brought serious cinema crashing down) seem terribly grown up? Although Charles Crichton was an Ealing man, his work here is more reminiscent of the Woodfall school of British realism, and light years away from his comedic timing in 'The Battle of the Sexes'. It's hard to deny that the dialogue gets a bit stodgy at times - a pity, since the screenplay contains a great many sly clues to the solution which can get lost amidst the psycho-babble. This was made at a time when much of the UK's cinema was in the hands of serious craftsmen and women - their films are exemplary lessons in thoughtful, considered cinema. However, in this case, fine technique fails to overcome a wordy screenplay, although it's a close-run thing.

While not a typical horror sequel, When A Stranger Calls Back contains some striking moments, and deals intelligently and compassionately with two of the most fragile heroines in cinema. By not resorting to standard 'shocks' and concentrating on creeping terror, the film has a lot more to say about the realities of real fear than most genre offerings. These are traumatised people who have reconstructed a precise simulacrum of their former lives. When a pencil they placed 2.2 centimetres from their ruler is discovered moved .2 of a centimetre, they know someone has invaded their territory and moved it, it's just not something they'd forget or mistake. The fact that it's impossible to prove makes the protagonists appear paranoid - only those who have brushed up against this type of terror before, Kane, Durning, Schoelen know the truth. Viewed from a less mainstream perspective, this is a very rewarding film. True, there is some muddled plotting midway, but it's worth seeing, if only for the bleakest 'happy' ending in American cinema. Incidentally, I'm sure Kevin Williamson would gladly admit to using a conglomeration of When a Stranger Calls and the first half hour of this film as his inspiration for the opening sequence of Scream (with added blood).