Night Caller (2021) User Reviews

Giallo slasher with wild Bai Ling performance

[BandSAboutMovies · 5/10 · 1 March 2022]

Director-writer Chad Ferrin's (The Deep Ones, Exorcism at 60,000 Feet) Night Caller pulls from so many films, feeling like a modern U. S. version of a late in the game giallo, which is not a bad thing.

It gets the genre names to get you into the movie part down, including Steve Railsback, Lew Temple, Bai Ling and Kelli Maroney in the lineup. And it really lays on the color switches, the gore and the weirdness throughout.

Clementine (Susan Priver) is a phone psychic for Jade (Bai Ling), except that both of them have some level of psychic ability for real. When a James Smith calls in, Clementine knows right away that he's a killer and she can see his murders inside her mind, a talent her mother had and her father (Robert Miano) has worried about enough that he makes her carry a gun. Yet when the cops try to help, they end up dead and now the danger really begins.

With references to Maniac and literally showing Dementia 13 and Patrick, this feels like a straight to video VHS movie and again, that's a good thing. It's not perfect, but it's quite willing to go absolutely for it, getting scalping, necrophilia and violent murder -- not to mention misogynistic dialogue out of an 80s movie -- into it.

The best part? Bai Ling is absolutely berserk. She should be in a real giallo, because I would pay money for that now. Let's try to make that happen.

Night line.

[DoorsofDylan · 1/10 · 11 December 2022]

Being my favourite genre, I was absolutely thrilled to learn that a new (Neo-) Giallo was going to feature in the online Soho Horror Film Festival, which led to me listening in on a call at night.

View on the film:

Introducing the screening/ stream as a tribute to the Giallo, writer/director Chad Ferrin & cinematographer Kyle McConaghy horrifically completely miss the distinctive marks of the genre, via dumping the caller into jabbing in the eye, over-saturated colours, which grinds across the screen for the entire run time, leaving everything looking like a gooey mash.

Attempting to slice into the Giallo, Ferrin leaves the would-be killer set-pieces lacking any sense of the ultra stylish Gialli glaze, as shaky zoom-ins hit rubbery practical effects, whilst the cast (which includes Bai Ling, who was wonderful in Dumplings 2004-also reviewed) stumble along attempting to ring in a sense of menace.

Initially calling up an intriguing set-up from telephone psychic Carter getting visions of who a regular caller/ serial killer is going to murder next, Ferrin hangs up the tension, and drops any chance of a Giallo mystery, or psychological thrills straight into the bleach, which wipes away any chance of dread being built up between the killer and Carter,as Ferrin appears to be more interested in a terrible transphobic twist ending, when the killer cuts the night call.

An enjoyable if somewhat flawed serial killer effort

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 7/10 · 14 May 2022]

After believing she's seen a murder, a worker at a psychic call center tries to make sense of the visions which soon brings her and a co-worker at the agency she works with onto the trail of a psychotic killer aware of the connection they share and must try to stop him before he kills again.

This was a pretty solid and somewhat enjoyable effort. Among the better features to be had here is the fun setup at play here that attempts to do something original with the idea of the psychic seeing visions of a killer committing murders. As the idea itself isn't the most creative to start with, the idea of her being forced to use her powers to help the killer pull off more crimes to help instills a sense of fear in her. This comes together rather nicely with the setpieces here detailing how she and her friend at the center are trying to use their abilities to help others and getting caught up in the fray about the series of highly-chilling scenes looking into the truth of her visions. That leads rather nicely into the film's highly impressive series of attacks and confrontations with the killer. Managing to spread itself nicely between actual present-day confrontations or the chillingly gruesome flash-visions of the killer attacking her, this comes together incredibly well with some strong scenes here. The opening attack while talking on the phone with the killer, a later scene abducting a victim from a car park or confronting the psychic on the phone are quite impressive and enjoyable, while the visions she gets from the contact they share in their encounters leave this with a lot to like. Along with the great gore in the brutal kills, these here hold this one up while there are some minor issues at play with this one. The main drawback to be had here is the utterly confusing and highly disjointed investigation that takes place here. This one jumps through a series of points that no real investigation would go through, from the police only getting involved at the very end despite all the bodies bearing the same operating method, to the complete jumping to conclusions when trying to bring her visions to others or the just flat-out saying of content that is unknown to her from sources that do which take the place of discovering the material for herself. This is all the better since hardly any of the motivations and purposes for the rampage make sense or make the killer threatening which overall makes this part of the film rather disappointing. That ties into the other detrimental factor with this one which is the rather jarring means through which this one attempts to showcase the psychic visions playing out. These are usually accomplished merely by having the recipient see images of the killer appearing before them and trying to attack which is a fine concept but grows rather disjointed over time as there's little about them that ties into the main narrative. They just appear without warning and are done without the context of them being visions so it comes off rather awkward in execution, leaving the entire investigation here being quite problematic and a big part of what holds this back.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.

NIGHT CALLER hits the spot.

[libertysonenterprises · 10/10 · 20 April 2022]

For real: If you like twisted, subversive, giddily lurid, dark popcorn entertainment, this is a new movie specifically for you in this uptight sociological climate. A savvy, audacious, triumphantly grotesque, politically incorrect concoction made by and for people who like movies, this is abberation-laced candy for the psyche, but you can handle it; you're a big girl/boy/person. You may resume proper decorum and good taste as soon as it's over. ;)