The Caller

The plot has many elements that are similar to The Conversation but they are much more direct. I believe this allowed the characters to be more compelling as the viewer's brain isn't constantly spinning in an effort to solve the puzzle. Like most of the characters you'll probably know how things are going to end early on. Usually I would be disappointed in a movie that I knew the outcome only minutes after it began but the strong performances allowed me to attach myself to theme of the finite nature of our existence. I would've liked to have seen Laura Harring's character introduced sooner and the relationship further developed but I understand that not being much to it was the point.

That is all pretty general but if you like these movies and or performances I think that you'll enjoy The Caller.

As previously stated The Conversation has many similar elements. Elliot Gould is every bit the equal of Gene Hackman, although I doubt any of the young male actors become Harrison Ford.

The Fall has a similarly age mismatched relationship with a precocious young girl struggling to come to terms with very adult issues.

Frank Langella's performance reminded me of a less menacing Laurence Olivier in Marathon Man. Maybe it was the WWII age character roaming around NYC?

I also found a connection between the mother and Yoda but I don't necessarily think this is for Star Wars fans. Curiously Helen Stenborg doesn't appear in the IMDb credits?

I throughly enjoyed each of those movies and feel that The Caller can easily be mentioned in the same breath with any of them.

I saw this at Cinequest in San Jose, in the gorgeous California Theater, but this movie would look good in the homeliest cineplex. This is the rarest of thrillers: one that makes its impact through careful character studies and a refusal to give up its secrets. Frank Langella gives a sterling performance as the corporate whistle-blower marked for death, subtle and surprising in its emotional power. Elliott Gould isn't quite as effective as a private detective/birder, but he is very watchable as he watches his subjects, both human and avian. "The Caller" actually looks more like a fine French drama, in its attention to detail and the deft use of its child actors. Definitely worth watching!

I always think to myself , 'if I can bear to watch a movie 5 times or more then it's not so bad', and this movie was for me extremely watchable but mainly because of the great actors involved, Frank Langella and Elliott Gould. I suppose if it had been made with lesser talent, a contrived story like this would have been hard to take, but it is interesting how the two men come together after 60 plus years, in order for both to seek closure from a destroyed childhood in Nazi occupied France.

It's as mysterious and compelling as any other drama I've seen of this sort. Laura Harring, who plays Langella's lover, is one of the most sensuous actresses around, she's perfect in the part, as enigmatic and subtle as Elliott Gould and Frank Langella.

This is one of those films that never gets off the mark. It has an interesting premise, but then it's characters stop communicating. Everything they say has a constipated double intent. Some of them don't know what is going on and, unfortunately, neither do we. So we get all this talk, passing by the receptors. I really don't understand all the motivations. Do we choose to die because we are tired of the game? Perhaps. I'm kind of an embrace life guy and if we are going to go out, do it in a blaze of glory. Not lying on the edge of the bay. Who are these guys and why do they invest so much effort to complete their job. Espionage and all its implications are fine when we are seeking information steeped in layers of cover up. Here we have a man resolved to die. Is there more to this. The past is revealed but is that a reason for the motivations here? I just didn't fined myself compelled to go ahead.

This is not worth the electricity it takes to play it in a DVD player. I've seen thousands of movies and this with out a doubt ranks down there way at the bottom. Please save your time and just take a nap or something; I've seen home movies better than this. Now, the actors were okay; the story line was horrible. It was so slow. The scenery was ordinary, the traffic was as good as I've seen. How can you mess up cars and buildings in the background? When this was made, time would have been much better spent cleaning out drawers or moping the kitchen. It's just about as interesting as watching grass grow. Do yourself a great big favor and think of something else to entertain yourself.