The Call
Review by Anthony Morris
Six months after messing up an emergency call that resulted in a teenage girl being kidnapped and killed, Los Angeles 911 operator Jordan Turner (Halle Berry) is still too shattered to go back on the front line answering calls.
But while taking the group of newbies she’s training around the call centre, another teenager (Abigail Breslin) makes a desperate call, this time from the boot of her kidnapper’s car.
Turner is the only one who can handle it, but will she manage to get it right this time?
And even if she does do everything right, is that going to be enough to save the teenager from someone who – as becomes painfully clear as the film goes on – will stop at nothing to ensure he gets away with his prize?
There’s no prizes on offer for guessing how this extremely predictable story plays out, but that doesn’t mean the first two thirds of this thriller aren’t gripping.
Director Brad Anderson (Transsiberian, The Machinist) keeps things simple and efficient here, which is always a good way to go with this kind of film, though there are a few oddball touches towards the end with things take a turn for the murder dungeon.
The film’s middle stretch, where Turner advises the kidnapee on ways to figure out her location and signal for help while the police search LA’s highways and the kidnapper (Michael Eklund) becomes increasingly desperate in his escape attempts, is as good as you could ask for in a thriller.
Sadly the ending, where Turner heads out to investigate the crime scene in person, is both inevitable and very, very silly.
3 out of 5
The Call
Australian release: 16th May, 2013
Cast: Halle Berry, Abigail Breslin, Morris Chestnut, Michael Eklund, Michael Imperioli
Director: Brad Anderson
