SummaryA hundred miles away from the scene of a grizzly murder in small town American, Jill Johnson (Belle) settles in for a routine night of babysitting. With the children sound asleep and a beautiful home to explore, she locks the door and sets the alarm. But when a series of eerie phone calls from a stranger insists that she "check the children," Jil... Read More
Directed By:Simon West
Written By:Steve Feke, Fred Walton, Jake Wade Wall
When a Stranger Calls
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
27
User score
Mixed or Average
5.5
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
27
0% Positive
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
45% Mixed
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
55% Negative
11 Reviews
11 Reviews
50
The movie ends with a bizarre and unsatisfying denouement. The epilogue, which is designed either to set up a sequel or lampoon "Halloween 2," plays like a sour last note. I suppose someone thought it was clever, but it doesn't work.
50
After an hour of red herrings, in which Jill investigates creepy corridors or opens rattling closet doors with no results, the only real danger is that we'll become bored to death. For real thrills, rent the original, turn down the lights and scare yourself silly.
User score
Mixed or Average
5.5
32% Positive
18 Ratings
18 Ratings
42% Mixed
24 Ratings
24 Ratings
26% Negative
15 Ratings
15 Ratings
Jul 5, 2020
9
I know alot of people don't care for this film but I think it's one of the best remakes in my opinion. Let's face aside from the first 20 minutes the original was pretty unwatchable it was followed by a Superior showtime sequel and now remade into it's best form. Taking the originals opening and stretching it out for 90 minutes makes for a simplistic, edge of your seat, achingly suspenseful nightmare. Similar to Halloween in its form and ambitions. Camilla Belle is awesome as the young babysitter forced to work at a gorgeous house in the middle of nowhere to pay for her cell phone bill. Upon arriving she's told the children are asleep but as the night goes on there are strange occurrences and creepy phone calls with the voice of a disturbing Lance Henriksen. It all leads up to a mostly satisfactory finale as the killer and Jill have a face off. The movie is directed stylishly with gorgeous, immersive cinematography and a solid lead performance from Camilla Belle. Budget: $15M
Box Office: $67M 8.5/10
Jul 14, 2017
9
Okay I can agree the middle part was just filler but when the real stuff came in OH MAN! That was scary! When the person said, "The calls are coming inside the house!" I got so scared! Well it was predictable but the way he said it oh my god. Its a really scary movie but has a lot of filler.
40
Loud, noisy, flashy but too rarely chilling.
30
This remake takes an alternate tack from the original feature, expanding the story of "The Sitter" to a full 83 minutes, but the result is dull and painfully generic.
25
When a Stranger Calls is ba-a-a-a-c-k, in frightless form, updated for the age of anytime minutes and caller ID.
25
Ineptly directed by Simon West, the scare-free When a Stranger Calls is the worst of the seminal horror movies from the late '70s and early '80s that have been getting the remake treatment lately.
0
Long distance information? Get me Hollywood, USA: I’ve got a rusty ice pick to bury in the gullet of whoever greenlighted this pointless exercise in masturbatory tedium.
Sep 1, 2011
7
I don't care what others say, I like this suspense thriller, yes its a suspense thriller not a horror movie. Its a remake which right away just by being a remake people will bash this film, you know the ones who are all "anti-remake" and anytime they hear of one it seems like their world is coming to an end. Some say this was an unnecessary remake, I disagree, this is great for teens, teenagers back when the original came out got to enjoy it and its creepiness, so this generation should as well. I thought it moved at a decent pace and was surprised that I liked this little thriller.
Apr 19, 2018
6
Apart from the fact that it is a very generic PG-13 horror movie and that the acting is dreadful, the movie isn't all that bad. The last 30 minutes, while being very predictable and cliché were pretty entertaining and the movie wasn't unwatchable. If you enjoy cliché, predictable PG-13 horror movies as guilty pleasures, you will probably find the movie at the very least entertaining, if not, you're better off watching something else.
Apr 8, 2020
3
I remember seeing this in theaters and not really being blown away by it. It's not a bad movie but it is mediocre in the worst way. It does nothing to leave an impression and really break the mold of just being another generic horror movie. It's just another unnecessary remake, which seemed to be coming out by the dozens during the time of its release. Stick with the original, It's as simple as that.
Mar 29, 2026
1
Over an hour goes by with absolutely nothing happening except cheap jump scares and endless slow walking through the house... that is the actual plot of this movie: a woman slowly walking through a house. And when something finally happens after an hour, nobody cares anymore, and it is not remotely worth the hour-long wait. While the original lives off the psychological mind games between the caller and the babysitter, this version relies on music, walking through the house, and throwing in multiple characters because they ran out of ideas. And to really ruin it, they removed the good plot elements from the original, just to make sure there is nothing good left in the film. Absolute trash.
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