The Call: reviews

What the critics say average 5.3 from 19 outlets

• 8.0 StarburstMartin Unsworth Director Timothy Woodward Jr delivers perfectly timed jump scares along the way, and it's an undemanding, fun watch that doesn't outstay its welcome. Read
• 7.5 Assignment XAbbie Bernstein 'The Call' is a generically-titled but otherwise solid horror movie. It has a decent premise, a good set-up that makes the right revelations at the right times, and smart casting in two key roles. Read
• 7.5 Coming SoonGrant Hermanns While it offers a new side to each performer that's wonderful to watch and some chilling imagery, its story leaves a little wanting. Read
• 6.0 Dread CentralDrew Tinnin Having Shaye and Bell together on screen for the first time combines both powerhouses from the Saw and Insidious franchises, and although their scenes together are admittedly short, the fact that both legacy actors received top billing is probably reason enough to dial up this surprisingly dark revenge tale. Read
• 6.0 Eye for FilmJennie Kermode An entertaining ride for horror fans which benefits from great production design, 'The Call' uses its clichés for a purpose and has fun along the way. Read
• 6.0 Fiction MachineGrant Watson Instead it is merely watchable: a curate's egg that, while entertaining in fits and starts, never comes together as a whole. Read
• 6.0 JoBloThe Iceman 'The Call' survives on the shoulders of Tobin Bell and Lin Shaye. Something that shouldn't surprise anyone, but having such talents (who never seem to phone it in), can save a film from mediocrity. Read
• 6.0 Red River HorrorStaci Layne Wilson The set used for the Cranston's house is atmospheric as can be, beautifully decorated as if by the lovechild of Stephen King and a Salem witch. Read
• 5.8 One Guy's OpinionFrank Swietek 'The Call' is a highly derivative horror movie lifted from utter mediocrity by a couple of veteran genre stars and some eye-catching nightmare sequences. Read
• 5.0 Horror ObsessiveAlix Turner I'm sure some will; perhaps those who are missing their teen TV stars, or those who enjoy being kept guessing. I'm also sure that most horror fans will find much more satisfying fare elsewhere on Shudder. Read
• 5.0 AIPTNathaniel Muir The premise is a deliciously goofy one that works if you do not think too hard about it. Read
• 5.0 CBRCass Clarke Although it doesn't quite land, it's worth noting that Stibbs frames the narrative in an intriguing way and creates an inventive premise behind the film's deadly mayhem. Read
• 4.0 The GuardianLeslie Felperin This confection is a fairly shonky assemblage of tired tropes, full of dropped connections and annoying static. Its biggest virtue is that it contains another gamey, and game-for-anything, performance from horror-film matriarch Lin Shaye. Read
• 4.0 The Hollywood NewsAndrew Gaudion 'The Call' is ultimately a derivative horror film with a half baked 80's setting and a narrative that struggles to maintain much in the way of originality and surprise. Read
• 4.0 The UpcomingAndrew Murray Ending on a note that's as hollow as its scares, 'The Call' is an unsatisfying stab at blending 80s nostalgia with ineffective and outright uninspired modern tropes. Read
• 4.0 The Wee ReviewKevin Ibbotson-Wight Neither phone it in, but they can't elevate a narrative that flatlines just at the moment it should burst into life. Read
• 4.0 Battle Royale With CheeseJoel Fisher 'The Call' is far more interested in its visuals than telling a coherent and compelling story, so after a while audiences may be forgiven if they wanted to hang up. Read
• 3.5 In Review OnlineIgor Fishman 'The Call' is another throwback teen horror, but apart from some fun outfits, it takes little inspiration or nostalgia from its '80s setting which is seemingly only there to fit the current trend and justify the presence of the landline at its heart. Read
• 3.0 What to WatchMatt Donato 'The Call' falls short in just about every conceivable aspect, wasting talents like Lin Shaye and Tobin Bell on a supremely unfrightful eyesore. Read