The Calling (2014)

Hazel Micallef (Susan Sarandon) is the detective superintendent of the small quiet town of Fort Dundas, Ontario, Canada. She likes her liquor and pills. She's recovering from back problems and OD hospitalization. Her mother (Ellen Burstyn) is concerned. She finds an elder almost decapitated. It's the first murder in four years. Detective Ray Green (Gil Bellows) asks for outside help but she rejects the concern. Ben Wingate (Topher Grace) is the new deputy arriving from Toronto. Another murder occurs in a nearby jurisdiction and they're called in. The victim's stomach has been removed and fed to the dogs. Hazel asks for help fearing a serial killer but is rejected. As more victims are uncovered, they find their mouths have been manipulated and Father Price (Donald Sutherland) is consulted. Meanwhile, a waitress (Kristin Booth) invites a mystery man (Christopher Heyerdahl) to her home to treat her terribly ill daughter.This cast is surprisingly first rate for a small Canadian serial killer movie. It has a quiet moodiness similar to those Scandinavian killing films. It does have a bit of humor which differentiates it and gives it its Canadianishness. It's an enticing serial killer movie even if it's a little slow. There isn't any mystery as the killer is shown early on. It is very questionable that this small town police officer is hopping across the country without contacting the local cops. The murders are not maximum compelling due to the cooperating victims. The big time cast keeps it interesting but it's not quite the moody indie thriller it hopes to be. The last act is over-extended. The killer returns back to the town which erases one of the killing's premise. All in all, it's a flawed but interesting film.

Set in the wintry rural wasteland of Canada, 'The Calling' could be the bastard child of 'Fargo' and 'Omen'. A serial killer is quietly going about his business until depressed, alcoholic, pill-popping Sheriff Hazel is roused from her suicidal daydreams by the mutilated corpse of an elderly female acquaintance. After she discovers several other mutilated remains have been scattered around the frozen countryside, Hazel begins to suspect one of cinema's most blood-curdling stock villains is on the prowl in the precinct. Scoffed at by her superior, she marshals the small town's oddball duo of police officers and their perky receptionist to catch themselves a deranged predator. Soon they are detecting like big city gumshoes, sipping strong black coffee in their cruisers and hot on the maniac's trail.The script reveals some glaring holes as Hazel's team uncovers an occult connection linking the killings, but decent acting papers over some of these threadbare patches. When a few of the loose ends are tied up at the conclusion, the killer turns out to be a fairly routine lunatic. The rationale for his murderous activities is the standard silliness for this genre of film, leaving 'The Calling' exposed as a rather tired old workhorse.

Some people claim they can hear the Calling, like our main bad guy in this movie. While there are some shades and he does have a goal, most of the viewers will not root for him. Of course there is controversy with a theme like that, though I'm surprised that Ebert (movie critic) gave it one of four stars.Just the acting alone should make you feel this deserves more. Even if you don't like Susan Sarandons character, the way she portrays her and plays her is just amazing. The supporting cast is great too, though it's not a "whoddunnit", but more a "whydunnit". Though the latter might be spoiled in most reviews of the movie. I won't do that here, though I know the "reason" will not be everyones cup of tea. You'll either be engaged with this or you won't

Before viewing 2014's The Calling, I did some research on whether or not it had a theatrical release. It did but the screen count was so small that nothing in terms of box office receipts, even registered. Basically, what's being reviewed here is yet again another generically titled thriller (isn't The Calling a band?) with a real good cast and a novice, unknown director to go along with it. That smells like straight- to-DVD right out of the gate. Time to plug in the microwave and fire up the Pop Secret. It's movie night people!Shot entirely in Ontario, Canada, taking place in Ontario, Canada (the town of Fort Dundas to be exact) and having virtually no actors/actresses with any smidgen of a Canadian accent, The Calling subjugates itself as a serial killer vehicle mixing religious mumbo jumbo with the vanity arc of Jack Kevorkian. The proceedings begin by establishing a main character who is an alcoholic, pill-popping, suicidal policewoman (one of the all-time most used cop movie clichés in the book, the protagonist who is quote unquote "battling demons"). Susan Sarandon (as Hazel Micallef) plays said deputy. She lives with her mother, goes through a daily routine where virtually no crime ever occurs in her precinct, and shares her job with a rather pessimistic fellow detective (Ray Green played by Gil Bellows). She also works with a secretary (Katy Breier as Melanie Cartright) who basically exists to answer phones and break the tension by lightening the mood (another heavily used cop movie cliché, I looked it up).As things progress, a series of murders occurs in Fort Dundas (the first set of them in four years) prompting detective Micallef to sense that it's the same person who committed all of them. She eventually acquires a new partner in Ben Wingate (Topher Grace) and so begins an investigation about a killer who is believed to have an interesting set of motives. When this person dispatches their victims, their mouths are left wide open. And along with this sicko's overly creepy MO, the crime scenes involved, are at times uniquely gruesome (a women's neck is virtually cut clean through, a man's stomach is extracted from him and thrown to a bunch of dogs, another dead man lies in a trailer park bed with a serious case of rigor mortis setting in, oy vey!).Essentially, this is a routine thriller that borrows heavily from stuff like 1995's Se7en (the whole crime scene aftermath thing occurs without Se7en's haunting film score) and Fargo (the wintry setting, the identical looking police uniforms, the exterior shots that if you squint hard enough, look as if you're actually watching the Coen brothers 1996 Oscar nominee). There are some effectively chilling moments and I like the fact that "Calling" is a slow burning exercise that really takes its time. However, the antagonist is revealed way too early (Simon played by Christopher Heyerdahl who looks like a cross between a bloodshot Woody Harrelson and Jeff Daniels) and when you find out that his victims actually want to die, well the creepiness and mystery (that existed early on) eventually become a non-factor. As for "Calling's" ending, I won't reveal what happens but I will tell that what's on screen is laughable. It's tacked on and provides a mild shock. But really, it just feels like the filmmakers ran out of fresh ideas.In conclusion, The Calling has decent acting and is passable for a weekend rental (or you could save five dollars by watching Criminal Minds reruns instead). At a running time of 108 minutes, I would "call" 40-45 of them worthy. Result: 2 and a half stars.