The Call (2020 American film)

The Call is a 2020 American horror film directed by Timothy Woodward Jr. and starring Lin Shaye, Tobin Bell, Erin Sanders, and Chester Rushing.^[3][4] The film was written by Patrick Stibbs.^[5]

The Call
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Timothy Woodward Jr.
Written by	Patrick Stibbs
Produced by	Jeffrey Reddick Patrick Stibbs Zebulun Huling Gina Rugolo James Cullen Bressack Randy J. Goodwin
Starring	Lin Shaye Tobin Bell Chester Rushing
Cinematography	Pablo Diez
Edited by	Wayne J. Liu
Music by	Samuel Joseph Smythe
Production companies	Voltage Pictures Appreciated Films Status Media & Entertainment
Distributed by	Cinedigm
Release date	October 2, 2020 (2020-10-02)
Running time	97 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$1,591,194[1][2]

Premise

In the Fall of 1987, after the unexpected death of an elderly woman suspected to be a witch, a group of friends who tormented her are forced to call a phone installed in her casket. To their horror, someone on the other end picks up and shows them what Hell really looks like.^[6]

Cast

• Lin Shaye as Edith Cranston
• Tobin Bell as Edward Cranston
• Chester Rushing as Chris
• Erin Sanders as Tonya
• Mike C. Manning as Zack
• Sloane Morgan Siegel as Brett
• Judd Lormand as Harliss

Release

The film was released theatrically in the United States on October 2, 2020 and on VOD on October 30, 2020.^[7] It released on Blu-ray on December 15, 2020.^[8]

Reception

The film received generally negative reviews.^{[9][10][11][12]} On Rotten Tomatoes, The Call has an approval rating of 44% and an average rating of 5.2/10, based on 25 reviews. The website's critical consensus states: "Some horror fans and '80s enthusiasts may answer The Call, although a lack of genuine scares and an overload of genre tropes will leave most struggling to maintain the connection.^[13]

Drew Tinnin of Dread Central awarded the film three stars out of five.^[14]