Fatal Call (2012)

I wanted to but couldn't!

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Note: I streamed this from Amazon Prime on a 4K TV. "Fatal Call" is a thriller film with some actors you might remember from their earlier heydays. Why so many appear here is a bit baffling as this film is unworthy of their collective talents.The film goes for a jarring presentation of various segments of its story out of order until the big revelation at its end. With a better script and a bigger budget this might have worked. Instead, what we see is an amateurish low budget effort without many redeeming qualities. It feels like a simple heist that was present out of order for the sake of being different. The story isn't engaging enough to warrant such an approach. Given the few locations where scenes occur, the film preys on your boredom. Until there is an odd cut from one scene to the next. Early in the film the main character meets the female lead and they share all of about five minutes of interaction before falling deeply in love. There is a cut from a chase sequence to them making love in that hokey movie way where the actor covers every part of her body that would result in a higher rating. This portion features an instance of characters not speaking loud enough for the camera to capture their voices. These decisions are less defensible than they would be for a film from The Asylum or another competing company because this film was written, directed, and edited by the same person!There isn't much to see here or enjoy. Don't be tricked into watching it due to the surprisingly respectable cast or the inaccurate film poster.

From start to finish I was on the edge of my seat! I loved the way the relationship between Mitch and Amy developed and the love scenes. The twists and turns kept me guessing to the end! The scene where Mitch is hiding under the bed when the killer was walking around the room was very suspenseful. Mitch's friend was at times hilarious and the scenes when he was waiting outside the house was a nail-biter. My girlfriend and I rented it and had such a good time watching it! It is a perfect Friday night movie! The climatic chase at the factory was explosive. Kevin Sorbo is pretty cute considering he is my mom's age! I highly recommend this movie, it's a fast-paced intelligent thriller!

With its plot line this could have been an acceptable film, but since the director (who wore many hats in this) chose to (a) direct this in a non-linear, highly confusing style, jumping around so much it was hard to know just where we were and (b) chose every tried and true setup that of course everyone sees coming from afar. Add to that the contrived scenes and of course the obligatory abandoned factory where the rent is cheap. Aside from that, the acting was acceptable and the camera work okay; it's simply that there were no surprises; none at all, and the lead character, while likable and charismatic, was played in such a way that it was impossible to believe he could be so stupid. In the end we have to blame the writer/director/editor and also barfly, Jack Snyder. One final word: through the opening titles we're flashed with scenes of an old-fashioned rotary phone being dialed. Since this was a modern-day film with today's cell phones and the closest thing there was to a fatal call was a fatal missed call, I really wonder where the rotary phone came into this at all.

This movie has a tremendous storyline but unfortunately it is poorly produced. I could not become completely immersed as I was constantly reminded of its amateurish feel. Though professionally written this production only fails in the way it is played out. The acting is bad, the timing is off and the general continuity lacks proper direction and good editing skill. With regard to the acting, itself, my main concern would be with the majority of the actors failing to synchronize their eye movements with the actual thoughts they are supposed to be depicting. As far as the location shooting goes, the factory/refinery setting is supposed to be an abandoned plant and no longer in operation yet when we first see this location steam is rising from some of the vents. A poor production, overall, but a great "thriller" story all the same.