5.3 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
Remake of the 1979 classic. Popular high school teen Jill gets a babysitting job at a beautiful, isolated home watching two children for the night. Soon, a storm approaches and strange calls start coming in. Is it Jill's friends playing a prank on her? Or is it a crazed serial killer looking for his next victim?
Starring: Camilla Belle, Tommy Flanagan, Katie Cassidy, Tessa Thompson, Brian GeraghtyHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 39% |
Mystery | 23% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (448 kbps)
None
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 1.5 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 2.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
This 2006 'remake' of the classic film of the same name is currently available in the 'Queens of Scream' triple feature, which is a rebrand of the same collection previously released by Mill Creek in 2016 under the title 'Horror Triple Feature' or '3 Triple Feature' depending on how literal one wants to be in the wording. The film was not previously released individually by any studio. Though the film shares precious disc real estate with two other pictures, the video quality is, at least, acceptable. Audio is a relative weakness and no extras are included. See below for brief film and A/V reviews.
This is a more than adequate transfer. Though as it is reviewed here it shares a disc with two other films, the picture is generally stable and agreeably filmic at its baseline, with light grain retention, solid though not spectacular detailing, and a grounded color palette limited by the home's modern stylings and the movie's generally dark and bleak visual tone. There are certainly some limitations in terms of visible compression artifacts, but such are not a serious detriment to the overall picture quality. Find at the 1:02:35 mark some of the worst macroblocking examples as they appear along a dark stairwell inside the house. But other maladies are kept in check and the image is really quite impressive given the constraints and the extremely low price for point of entry; Mill Creek is all but giving this bundle away.
When a Stranger Calls' Dolby Digital 5.1 lossless soundtrack suffers from the same problem encountered in its on-disc companion I Know What You Did Last Summer, namely ample front width and surround support hindered by very low volume and constrained dynamics. At reference level, the track sounds puny, never wanting for more raw front side and surround based effects -- including plenty of discrete effects and total stage envelopment effects -- but expect to find both that low volume and a lack of detail and depth in accompaniment. Ringing phones, blaring home security alarms, stormy weather outside, misting water in the home's interior garden/arboretum area are all present but struggle to deliver a healthy, precise listen. Dialogue clarity is decent and center-focused but again absent volume and lifelike detail. It's a shame because the track is active enough and a better sound presentation might have alleviated (however so slightly) the ridiculously poor pacing, but alas it's another nail in the coffin for a Blu-ray that would be amongst the least the format has ever seen were it not pulled up from the depths by that low, low price point.
No supplemental content is included.
S-L-O-W. This take on A Stranger Calls might have worked had it simply been a double of the previous film's opening runtime, perhaps even triple, but a quadrupling of the runtime? With a horrifically dull finale the only payoff? Pass. The film is competently put together otherwise, but it's impossible to recommend at this length. Video is actually decent, audio could use some work, and no extras are included. Normally a skip, but considering the movie essentially costs less than $2 in the Queens of Scream triple pack, those looking for something to fill their movie watching schedules may as well pick it up.
(Still not reliable for this title)
2007
25th Anniversary Edition
1997
2004
2006
2007
Director's Cut
2005
2010
Collector's Edition
2001
Hellraiser V
2000
Limited Edition
1980
Unrated Director's Cut
2009
1981
2003
Collector's Edition
1988
2013
Unrated Director’s Cut
2008
Unrated Director's Cut
2009
The Pact II
2014
1979
Standard Edition
1959