When a Stranger Calls (2006)

Director- Simon West
Release Date- 12/05/06 (UK)
Distributed by- Screen Gems
Genre- Horror
Tagline: Evil Hits Home

During an otherwise routine babysitting gig, a high-school student is harassed by an increasingly threatening prank caller.

ANALYSIS

In the first five minutes of the film a female is presented as weak.
This is shown after she answers her phone call, from a stranger, who asks her what her name is, she replies ‘I’m the babysitter.’ She is later seen being dragged down by someone (the stranger on the phone) screaming. This long shot of her portrays her as a victim. Her screaming is juxtaposed by children laughing at a fair nearby to the house at which she is babysitting.

The next scene is in Colorado, the film introduces us to Jill, a young female in high school, who has problems with her Boyfriend.
- She is shown to be independent, because she broke up with her Boyfriend, who kissed her best friend- Tiffany. The fact that she is shown running in a gym above males, suggests she is powerful and dominant, as she is higher than them. A high angle is used to show where she is and what she is doing. Also, she is shown not to be a stereotypical cheerleader, who craves the attention from her male peers.
- Tiffany is shown to be someone who does not care for anyone else’s feelings. Later on in the film she calls herself ‘a bitch’ which can sum up her character by herself.

Her story starts, when she has gone over her phone minutes, as a consequence she is not allowed her phone, her car, and is not allowed to go out anywhere. Her dad has given her a job as a babysitter for someone he knows.
- Here she is shown as female who look afters children, a question that can be raised here, is that why couldn’t a male be the babysitter instead? The female is stereotyped as a maternal figure, she has to care children.

The house she is babysitting at is isolated; it is set during the evening when it is dark. The house is surrounded by water- a lake, with woods nearby (trees all over)
- TYPICAL CONVENTION

30 minutes into the film:

The phone rings, and there is heavy breathing on the other side- to the audience it can suggest she is the next victim, as she is a babysitter, just like the first female, and the phone call is the same. There is a medium shot of her looking scared.
The door closes behind her; she hears footsteps and the lights go on automatically.
- TYPICAL CONVENTION

The phone rings again, this time she hears crackling, and the man asks her
‘Is everything OK?’

45 minutes into the film:

She is shown entering a room full of birds, which scare her. This is an intertextual reference to, The Birds (1963) a horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock.

After this scene her ex- best friend Tiffany come to the house, she is shown to be a stereotypical blonde. She is shown to be attracted to alcohol; this is a negative representation of females.
When she is leaving alone, she drops her keys; there are loud noises in the background of footsteps and branches. Then from the point of view from the stranger, we see Tiffany trying to move the gate. There then is a close up of her from the stranger’s point of view- suggesting to the audience he has attacked her.

We are now back to Jill- the phone rings, and she answers ‘what Tiffany’
A male voice says ‘This isn’t Tiffany’ there is all of sudden a loud wind sound. This sets the mood for the audience, as it is thrilling and mysterious, as they want to know who is behind it all.

Another female who is presented is – Rosa- the house keeper, she is shown to have disappeared- the audience can then figure out the stranger has got to her.

The phone rings again- there is a long shot of the eerie atmosphere.
The man say’s ‘Have you checked the children?’
She checks the children and they are fine.
Walking down the stairs, the phone rings, the stranger tells her he ‘is outside the house,’ and he can see her.
She pulls the curtains, because he is now scaring her.

Looking outside she sees a dark shadow in the guest house, a close up of Jill shown, shows her as frightened.

The phone rings- she asks him what he wants, and he replies
“Your blood all over me”
The water is heard running upstairs, then a close up of JILL.

1 hour 5 minutes into the film:

The police ring, because earlier she phoned them and reported the calls, they then traced the calls. They tell her the calls are coming from inside the house…
Jill goes upstairs and finds, Rosa on the floor dead K - that was obvious
Also the kids are missing.

20 minutes left of the film:

The kids are found hiding in their room; they tell JILL there is a man in the room. He jumps down from the top, wearing all black.

She and the children run away, where the birds and little river is. She is hiding in the water below, and sees a dead female- which is Tiffany. The children run outside into the living room, and Jill gets caught, but she manages to escape him.
He catches her again, but she hits him with something used for an electric fire- a metal rod.

She runs outside and bumps into the police.
She is seen sitting there alone, as the car with the stranger is inside, the audience can finally see his face which is a close up.
The TV news is shown saying, a man has been captured, who has killed 15 young females.
A final scene is her in an empty hospital alone, the phone rings and the stranger is behind her….She wakes up screaming in a busy hospital.

Jill is represnted as a vitcim, but strong, as she survived. However, even though she escapes him, she is still a victim, because she has gone mad.