The Calling

"When all the sacrifices are complete God will forgive the trespasses." Hazel (Sarandon) is a detective is a town where nothing ever happens. When she stops in to see a local woman that hasn't been answering her phone she is shocked to see her murdered. When more and more bodies are found she suspects a serial killer. New officer Ben Wingate (Grace) starts to help her investigate and what they find is more chilling then they imagined. There are some movies that are very slow moving and hard to stay focused on. This is a slow moving movie that actually manages to hold your attention. This is kind of a mix of Seven and Boondock Saints in the way that the killings are related to the Bible but when you find out the reason for them you start to wonder if it's really a bad thing. This is a movie that you can not talk too much about without giving away something but I will say that I did enjoy this even though it did seem to drag in a few parts. Overall, a creepy movie that is worth seeing but you have to be in the mood for it. I give it a B.

source: The Calling

Absolut under-rated film, interestingly coloured, excellent cameraman work, Susan Sarandon on her top, with suprising end. It's a really good entertainment for a weekday evening.

'The Calling' is one of those movies that never tries to stand out in any way. It never tries to shock its audience and win points with extra levels of violence or shocking plot twists that leave your mouth gaping open. It is simply content being a solid, well acted film that audiences can appreciate and then most likely forget. And that's OK. It's better than a film trying to be more than what it's capable of and turning into a bombsite. Director Jason Stone, in his feature film debut, made the call to go down this route and I think it was a good decision all things considered. The movie has a solid cast, but not an overly exciting one. Susan Sarandon, Donald Sutherland, Topher Grace, Ellen Burstyn - all fine actors, however none of them are going to steal a scene or bring a lot of energy to the film. That was one issue with the film, was that it always felt a little flat. No real action scenes or plot twists can find the movie going through the motions, discovering clue after clue, until the final showdown and then it's over. Solid, but a little tedious at times. Nevertheless it's more watchable than a number of thrillers being released today and it certainly isn't going to offend anyone. Give it a look.

Review: This is a very average movie about a serial killer whose on the loose in a small town. As you know who the killer is right from the beginning, there isn't anything that surprising happening from beginning to end. Your just watching the police pieces the clues together, which wasn't that exciting. The lead character (Sarandon), is head of the whole operation but with her addiction to pain-killers and drink, she finds it hard to juggle her professional career with her personal life. Her only escapism from her somewhat glum personal life is to give the case her all, with the help of a new cop who helps her track down the killer. I was hoping for a major twist to make the movie slightly interesting but nothing that exciting happens. When they finally piece all of the pieces together, it's just a matter of time before the killer comes face to face with the cops but it still sticks with the slow pace which made me go to sleep after a while. The performances were also nothing that fantastic but the baddie did look pretty evil. Anyway, it's not anything amazing but I'm sure it will make a good TV movie. Boring! Round-Up: I've seen Topher Grace in quite a lot of movies lately but I still find him to be a basic actor who hasn't got a long range. He played the baddie in the new Predators and he stars in the big budget Instellar but he hasn't become a household name yet and to be honest, I doubt that he will. That's not to say that he's a bad actor because I have seen worse, but he's geeky looks and lack of screen charisma means that he would have to get the perfect role to push him into the mainstream. Susan Sarandon on the other hand is a veteran in the game and she still has been cast in some big movies like the strange Cloud Atlas and Tammy so at the age of 68, there's no signs of her taking a rest. As for this movie, it would have been much better if you didn't know who the killer was until the end of the movie. The fact that the director chose to take out the suspense element, didn't leave the audience much to work with which is why it seemed so basic.   I recommend this movie to people who are into their drama/thrillers about a bunch of cops, working together to try and catch a warped minded serial killer. 3/10

Inspector Hazel Micallef, a Fort Dundas police officer living with her mother Emily, has her normally quiet routine interrupted when she is called to check in on Delia Chandler, a local elderly resident, and finds Delia gruesomely murdered with her face moulded into an apparent open-mouthed scream. The local coroner, however, advises them that shaping the face would have required the killer to hold it in position for at least an hour post-mortem. When Micallef, along with detective Ray Green and new officer Ben Wingate, find out that other murders have been committed with the same m.o., they realise that the killer is trying to convey a message and must be stopped before he kills again. First thing that you think of when you start watching The Calling is Fargo because this has a very similar look & feel to that film. Unfortunately, The Calling is just as boring as Fargo as well. The film starts out OK, not moving too fast and building up the story pretty nicely as it goes along, but it gets to a certain point where, instead of getting more exciting/thrilling, it goes the other way and gets slower. I enjoyed about the 1st 40 minutes or so as it was interesting and was good the way the plot was unfolding, but not long after that, my interest started to fade as it just started to get boring and I got to the point where I just didn't care why the killer was doing what he was doing. The movie's cast was pretty good with Susan Sarandon (even though I think she's HIGHLY overrated), Donald Sutherland (even if he is only in the film for a total of about 10 minutes), and Gil Bellows, but even they couldn't save this movie from being a bit or a snore-fest. The Calling, overall, is not that bad of a movie, but it's most definitely not the best.

Why Susan why. Your such an amazing actress why would you do something so boring with no plot line or character development. You are acting like the character you are playing that takes pills. This movie is not even a movie. Nothing happens and from the beginning you know the pathetic killer. Why is this a movie....I still love you Susan I'll assume you were bored and wanted to play a trick on us. Please don't watch and waste your money. I could've had Starbucks or boba tea instead. My dog the killer right away and the best actors were the dog eating body parts don't let that make you think this is an interesting graphic movie it's not. The movie is playing on my TV right now couldn't even make it through without letting you know I want to die. I missed work for this.

In a sleepy Canadian town, police inspector Susan Sarandon sees a pattern between a local murder and murders in the surrounding jurisdictions of various men and women who have had their mouths manipulated into odd positions before rigor mortis set in. The victims were all Catholic as well, a clue which leads Sarandon's officer to Father Donald Sutherland, who tells her of the resurrection of Jesus through the sacrifice of 12 willing souls. Video on-demand release looks and feels like so many other films--serial killer genre or otherwise--that each new revelation Sarandon and deputy Topher Grace come upon feels like old news. Sarandon, who (in an identical costume) cannot escape comparisons to Frances McDormand's police chief from "Fargo", tries giving us a complicated woman (she suffers from a bad back, she can't work a cell phone, she lives with her mother, she's seeing a married man), but none of these character quirks adds much to the film's final tally. Director Jason Stone sets up some interesting shots, and the movie might be called a polished piece of work--however, it's too polished with its steely blues and grays. The grisly nature of the crimes is then undercut by black humor which doesn't feel spontaneous (it's too mechanical); and by introducing the killer so early in the narrative, the audience is two steps ahead of the heroine. * from ****

Detective Hazel Micallef (Susan Sarandon) has her emotional problems in a sleepy Canadian town and life is easy and slow until some murders awaken her sensibilities. She notices that the murdered people seem to have their mouths manipulated to mouth words, but what words are being said? More murders confirm this hunch and what is the murderer trying to say? Got your attention now? As I started to watch, I felt this played like a good mystery for FARGO (yes, and snow all over the place, too) and I kept hoping I would hear, "Ya, you betcha" coming from Detective Hazel's lips. Okay, just a thought. But here's another thought: why does the hero always seem to have emotional problems that play upon our "sensibilities?" Huh? Okay, just another thought. This is slow going, but gets us engaged without any hi-speed car chases or fantastic CGI. The reason this engages us is because we are constantly hearing questions about the murders and learn that the murders may be linked to the Bible? Say whaaaat? Okay, now we are fully engaged. Notables: Donald Sutherland, Ellen Burstyn, Christopher Heyerdahl. There is a very big twist at the very end that may have you questioning things……. maybe. Just another thought. But keep in mind: a very big twist. Really big! (7/10) Violence: Yes. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Gruesome scenes: Yes, bloody too. Language: Yes, not much

Despite a few plot flaws, this picture was way better than anticipated. If a thriller is only really good if compelling then this one is a winner. Sarandan is a small town copper who trips over a serial killer, manages to manage a predilection for whiskey (can't blame her for that) manages to connect the dots, and manages to find and follow the leads to a tension filled conclusion. Donald Sutherland, as an ageing priest, is as he always is... wearing a role like a comfortable suit of vraiments. Gil Bellows (who I liked so much in 3 Days in Havana) takes himself up another step in my appreciation. My fellow watcher commented that it's like a Dan Brown movie... but good. And I agree.