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When a Stranger Calls Back
When a Stranger Calls Back
When a Stranger Calls Back
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When a Stranger Calls Back
DVD cover
Genre
  • Horror
  • Mystery
  • Thriller
Based onCharacters created by Steve Feke
Fred Walton
Written byFred Walton
Directed byFred Walton
StarringCarol Kane
Charles Durning
Jill Schoelen
Music byDana Kaproff
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producersDoug Chapin
Barry Krost
ProducerTom Rowe
CinematographyDavid Geddes
EditorDavid Byron Lloyd
Running time94 minutes
Production companiesKrost/Chapin Productions
The Producers Entertainment Group
Pacific Motion Pictures
Original release
NetworkShowtime
ReleaseApril 4, 1993 (1993-04-04)
Related

When a Stranger Calls Back is a 1993 American made-for-television psychological horror film and a sequel to the 1979 classic When a Stranger Calls which reunites stars Carol Kane and Charles Durning (reprising their roles as Jill Johnson and John Clifford, respectively) with director Fred Walton from the original film. It was originally broadcast on Showtime on April 4, 1993.

Plot

[edit]

Julia Jenz (Jill Schoelen) arrives at Dr. Schifrin's house for a routine baby-sitting gig. Soon after Dr. Schifrin and his wife leave, a mysterious man knocks on the door. The man tells Julia that his car is broken down and asks to come inside to use the phone. Julia refuses him admittance, but agrees to call the auto club. She finds the phone is dead. Afraid to divulge this detail, Julia lies and says that she called the auto club. The auto club never arrives, and the man returns repeatedly asking for help. Hoping he'll go away, Julia continues to lie, but the conversations gradually become sinister. Meanwhile, Julia notices things are not as they appear in the house and comes to understand that someone's in the house. At this time, Julia also discovers the children have been abducted. The intruder is seen in the house as she narrowly escapes. It is later revealed that the children Julia babysat were never found or heard from again.

Five years later, Julia is an introverted college student still traumatized by the incident. To make matters worse, strange things happen from time to time in her apartment, and Julia comes to believe that the children's abductor is stalking her. Jill Johnson (Carol Kane), now a counselor at the college Julia attends, offers to help with the trauma of Julia's past experience as well as the current events taking place. Jill contacts John Clifford (Charles Durning) to come to Julia's aid and help figure out who is stalking her. For protection, Jill helps Julia purchase a gun and teaches her how to use it.

Julia comes to believe the intruder is entering her apartment while she's sleeping and decides to stay with Jill until she feels safe to return to her own home. Having been through a similar situation years before, Jill and a reluctant John investigate the incident from Julia's past and conclude the stalker may be a ventriloquist capable of throwing his voice; he employed this skill to make it seem like he was outside when speaking to Julia during the original stalking incident when the Schifrin children were kidnapped. As they investigate, Jill and John receive news that Julia has shot herself in the head while at her apartment. She survives, but falls into a coma. Jill promises to find her stalker.

John eventually tracks down the children's abductor at a club where the latter performs as a ventriloquist, just as John hypothesized, but the perpetrator escapes. John tracks down the perpetrator's home, and there finds pictures of Julia in the hospital and Jill's apartment. Having returned to her apartment, Jill notices a carton of juice bearing the faces of the abducted children Julia babysat. Frightened, she arms herself and the offender begins to taunt her; he is seen wearing makeup that allows him to "disappear" from sight against Jill's apartment walls. He attacks and in the altercation, Jill is shot. John shows up just in time to shoot and kill the intruder.

Some time later, Jill is recuperating in the hospital where Julia is located and is wheeled to Julia's room to discover her out of her coma.

Cast

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Release

[edit]

Home media

[edit]

When a Stranger Calls Back was released on VHS and DVD by Good Times Video on May 15, 2001. The film debuted on Blu-ray in the United Kingdom on December 17, 2018, in a limited collector's edition released by Second Sight. It included the first film and Walton's short film The Sitter as well as the score on CD and a 40-page book.[1] The limited edition was followed by a standard edition from Second Sight, no longer containing the book or soundtrack.[2]

The film was released on Blu-ray for the first time in the United States by Shout Factory on May 28, 2019. It includes a new 4K scan from the original camera negative, Walton's aforementioned short film, and interviews with the cast and crew.[3]

Reception

[edit]

The film received mixed reviews, with praise going towards the performances of the cast and the opening and ending sequence, but similar to the first film, criticisms were aimed at the slower pacing of middle act. Despite this, it received overall better reviews than its predecessor. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 63% based on 8 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10.[4]

Tony Scott of Variety gave the film a positive review, commending the film's acting, production design, direction, editing, and script.[5] Brett Gallman from Oh the Horror stated that, while it was as good as its predecessor, it shared too many of the same flaws to be entirely successful.[6] Dennis Schwartz of Ozus’ World Movie Reviews rated the film a grade B−, calling it "a decent nail-biter that plays on the tension it builds up, despite its gaps in logic".[7]

See also

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References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

When a Stranger Calls Back

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
When a Stranger Calls Back is a American made-for-television written and directed by Fred Walton, serving as a sequel to his 1979 film When a Stranger Calls. Starring in the lead role alongside and reprising their characters from the original, the film centers on a babysitter terrorized by a cunning and the ensuing investigation into similar crimes. It premiered on the Showtime network on April 4, , with a runtime of 94 minutes and an R rating for violence and brief nudity. The story unfolds in two timelines, beginning with college student Julia Jenz (Schoelen), who accepts a job for a family and soon experiences eerie phone calls that seem to come from within the house itself, heightening her fear as a stranger appears at the door requesting to use the phone. This incident leaves Julia traumatized, mirroring the babysitter attacks from the first film, but reveals a killer who uses to manipulate sounds and deceive his victims, including through dummy figures. Years later, when another young woman faces identical harassment, retired detective John Clifford (Durning) and crisis center counselor (Kane)—now dealing with the lingering effects of her own past ordeal—team up to track the perpetrator, leading to a tense confrontation that ties back to the original crimes. Produced as a cable original with a focus on over gore, the film emphasizes psychological tension and the vulnerability of isolated individuals. Critically, When a Stranger Calls Back holds a 63% approval rating on based on eight reviews, with praise for its effective opening babysitting sequence and overall , though some critics noted logical inconsistencies in the plot. On , it has a 6.1 out of 10 rating from over 4,400 users.

Story and characters

Plot

The film opens with high school student Julia Jenz babysitting two young children in a remote house. A stranger knocks on the door, claiming his car has broken down and requesting to use the phone; Julia refuses entry and pretends to call a tow service while keeping the door locked. The stranger begins making harassing phone calls, taunting her about the children and insisting he can see her. Distracted while watching television, Julia fails to notice the intruder entering the house through an unlocked door, and the children are abducted without a trace, leaving Julia traumatized. Five years later, Julia, now a college student living off-campus, experiences renewed terror as subtle signs of intrusion appear in her —such as rearranged furniture, open windows, and unfamiliar clothing in her closet—convincing her that the same has returned. Local police dismiss her claims as stemming from the past incident, but she turns to , a crisis counselor at the women's center who survived a similar ordeal years earlier. , recognizing the patterns of psychological manipulation, recruits her old ally, retired John Clifford, to investigate despite the lack of . As the escalates with anonymous phone calls and shadowy figures appearing nearby, and John uncover clues suggesting the perpetrator is a master of disguise and voice projection, employing to throw off his location during calls. The tension builds to a climactic confrontation in Julia's apartment, where the stalker, revealed as ventriloquist William Landis, traps her and continues his taunts. Overwhelmed by the and fear, Julia shoots herself in a desperate , falling into a . Meanwhile, Jill and John track Landis to Jill's own home, where he ambushes them in a brutal showdown; John fatally shoots Landis during the struggle, ending the threat. In the resolution, Julia awakens from her and begins recovering, while Jill, injured in the attack, is hospitalized but survives.

Cast

Carol Kane portrays Jill Johnson, a former babysitter who has become a crisis counselor, grappling with the lingering psychological effects of her traumatic experiences from years earlier. Kane reprises her role from the 1979 film When a Stranger Calls, bringing continuity to the character's evolution in this sequel. Charles Durning plays John Clifford, a retired who aids Jill in her investigations, driven by a sense of unresolved guilt tied to previous unsolved cases. Like Kane, Durning reprises his role from the original film, emphasizing Clifford's ongoing commitment to justice despite his retirement. Jill Schoelen stars as Julia Jenz, a young babysitter who becomes the target of a new threat, depicted as initially vulnerable and increasingly marked by psychological scars as events unfold. Gene Lythgow embodies William Landis, the enigmatic Stranger revealed as a ventriloquist whose manipulative dual personality forms the core of the film's antagonistic horror elements. Supporting roles include Cheryl Wilson as Mrs. Schifrin, one of the parents whose children are affected by the central events, and Kevin McNulty as Dr. Schifrin, Julia's employer during the babysitting incident; additional minor characters, such as abducted children and Julia's college peers, contribute to the surrounding tension without major arcs.

Production

Development

_Fred Walton, who directed and wrote the original 1979 film When a Stranger Calls, conceived the sequel When a Stranger Calls Back in the early 1990s as a way to revisit the "call from inside the house" trope, initially resisting the idea due to the original killer's death but proceeding amid financial needs and creative inspiration. Walton developed the script himself, and the project was first set up at 20th Century Fox before being picked up by Showtime. Produced as a made-for-TV movie by Krost/Chapin Productions and Pacific Motion Pictures for Showtime, the film aimed to capitalize on the original's cult following by expanding the narrative with a new victim while reprising leads Carol Kane and Charles Durning to examine the long-term effects of trauma. The script's development emphasized psychological horror over graphic violence, aligning with the constraints of television broadcasting, and no significant revisions were reported in Walton's discussions. Walton intended the sequel to update the urban legend of the babysitter in peril—rooted in real 1950s events like the 1950 murder of babysitter Janett Christman—for a new generation, maintaining the focus on suspenseful tension rather than gore.

Filming

Principal photography for When a Stranger Calls Back occurred primarily in , , , during 1992, with local sites standing in for American suburban and urban settings to facilitate the film's stalking sequences. The production was managed by Krost/Chapin Productions in association with The Producers Entertainment Group and MTE, Inc., tailoring the shoot to the constraints of a made-for-television feature for Showtime. David Geddes handled , employing subtle visual cues like shifted objects and shadowed interiors to amplify unease in enclosed spaces such as apartments and college rooms. Practical effects dominated the horror elements, with Jonathan Blackshaw creating the dummy and the stalker's camouflaged disguises that blend into backgrounds, prioritizing atmospheric dread over elaborate visuals. Sound design, supervised by Tom Gerard and Michael C. Casper, underscored the phone call illusions and psychological tension through layered audio cues, compensating for the limited visual effects budget typical of early TV productions. Dana Kaproff composed the score, utilizing eerie, minimalist arrangements to intensify the 's suspense without relying on full orchestral swells. Post-production proceeded efficiently to align with Showtime's broadcast timeline, with editor David Byron Lloyd emphasizing tight pacing across the story's dual timelines and no reported major reshoots.

Release

Broadcast

When a Stranger Calls Back premiered as an original made-for-television film on Showtime on April 4, 1993, serving as a direct sequel to the 1979 cult horror classic When a Stranger Calls.IMDb The movie aired during an evening slot on the premium cable network, targeting audiences interested in suspenseful thrillers, with marketing that highlighted its connection to the original film's enduring popularity among horror enthusiasts.Variety Unlike its predecessor, it received no theatrical release and was exclusively distributed via television, positioning it as a typical mid-tier cable original in the early 1990s landscape of made-for-TV horror sequels; specific viewership figures are not publicly available.IMDb With a runtime of 94 minutes, the film carried an R rating due to and brief . Initial promotion featured trailers that emphasized the return of stars and , along with the sequel's innovative twist on the stalker narrative involving a ventriloquist .YouTube Official Trailer

Home media

The film was released on in during the , with a DVD release by Good Times Video on May 15, 2001. The film's Blu-ray debut took place in the on December 17, 2018, via a limited collector's edition from Second Sight Films, which included new interviews with director Fred Walton and star . In the United States, Shout! Factory's Scream Factory imprint issued a Blu-ray edition on May 28, 2019, featuring extras such as cast audio commentaries and behind-the-scenes featurettes. As of 2025, the film remains available for digital purchase and rental on platforms including Amazon Video and Apple TV, though no 4K UHD release has been produced. Internationally, PAL-format DVDs were released in during the , with censored edits for violence in certain regions.

Reception

Critical reception

When a Stranger Calls Back holds a 63% approval rating on , based on 8 critic reviews with an average score of 6.3/10. Contemporary reviews were generally positive to mixed, highlighting the film's suspenseful elements and performances while noting occasional narrative flaws. of Variety praised director Fred Walton's "cunning direction" for creating "a basketful of scary passages," along with solid work from as the protagonist and fitting production design by Chris August; he described the telefilm as a "good rattler" overall, though it suffered from some "logic dropouts." Charles Durning's return as the was seen as reliable, if understated, while Carol Kane's portrayal of the traumatized survivor was more variable. Dennis Schwartz awarded the film a B−, calling it a "decent nail-biter" that effectively builds tension through its opening sequence and climax, despite "gaps in logic" that disrupt the momentum after the halfway point. In retrospective assessments tied to the Blu-ray release, critics have viewed the sequel more favorably as a production, often ranking it above the original for pacing and engagement, though some effects feel dated by modern standards. For instance, of Horror News noted it as a "decent little flick" that holds up reasonably well on revisit, appreciating the core suspense while acknowledging its age.

Legacy

In horror film circles, When a Stranger Calls Back (1993) is frequently highlighted as an underrated entry in the genre, praised for its effective use of psychological tension and innovative twists on classic urban legends. Film expert Kier-La Janisse included it among the 25 best underrated horror movies, noting its skillful execution as a made-for-television sequel that elevates the original's premise. Critics have described it as superior to the 1979 original in structure and impact, with one review calling it a "superior film" that improves upon the predecessor's flaws while maintaining continuity through returning cast members. The film's cultural impact lies in its reinforcement of the "" trope, a staple of horror rooted in real-life urban myths about intruders making calls from within the home. This narrative device, drawn from dating back to the 1950s, has influenced subsequent slashers by emphasizing isolation and escalating dread through everyday technology like telephones. It popularized variations of the stalker-in-the-house motif in later works, contributing to the trope's evolution in 1990s horror cinema. No additional sequels were produced beyond this entry, though the film has endured through references in media discussions of horror conventions. Its legacy extends to niche entertainment formats, including a comedic riff by the team in 2013, which highlights the film's suspenseful elements for humorous effect and has introduced it to new audiences. The story's exploration of trauma has also been analyzed in examining urban legends and their cinematic adaptations. As of November 2025, When a Stranger Calls Back is available via free ad-supported streaming on , with options for digital purchase and rental on platforms like Amazon Video, Vudu, and . A 2019 Blu-ray release by Scream Factory, featuring a new 2K scan, audio commentary, and interviews with director Fred Walton, composer Dana Kaproff, and actress , has renewed fan interest by providing deeper insights into its production and themes. This edition has been credited with enhancing appreciation for the film's subtle handling of psychological aftermath. The movie occasionally appears in horror festival lineups, such as the 2019 Slash N' Bash Horror/Sci-Fi Film Festival in , fostering ongoing discussions of its progressive elements. Retrospectives, including analyses of its feminist undertones in portraying female resilience amid trauma, underscore its place as a thoughtful addition to slasher subgenre history.

References

  1. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/
  2. https://www.allmovie.com/movie/when-a-stranger-calls-back-am29736
  3. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/when_a_stranger_calls_back
  4. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/releaseinfo/
  5. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/plotsummary/
  6. https://www.moriareviews.com/horror/when-a-stranger-calls-back-1993.htm
  7. https://www.dreadcentral.com/editorials/527686/this-made-for-tv-movie-features-horrors-best-jump-scare/
  8. https://www.filmsite.org/greattwists48.html
  9. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/characters/nm0001406/
  10. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/trivia
  11. https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/30554-when-a-stranger-calls-back/cast
  12. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/fullcredits
  13. https://www.scifinow.co.uk/dvd-and-bluray/when-a-stranger-calls-flashback-interview-with-fred-walton/
  14. https://collider.com/when-a-stranger-calls-true-story/
  15. https://variety.com/1993/tv/reviews/showtime-original-movie-when-a-stranger-calls-back-1200432115/
  16. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/locations/
  17. https://letterboxd.com/film/when-a-stranger-calls-back/
  18. https://moviesandmania.com/2018/12/03/when-a-stranger-calls-back-reviews-movie-film-horror-1993-overview-cast-plot/
  19. https://www.set-jetter.com/ontheset/whenastrangercallsback
  20. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108556/parentsguide/
  21. https://alchetron.com/When-a-Stranger-Calls-Back
  22. https://www.thefancarpet.com/movie_news/when-a-stranger-calls-when-a-stranger-calls-back-limited-edition-blu-ray-packed-with-special-features-arrives-this-december/
  23. https://secondsightfilms.co.uk/products/when-a-stranger-calls-limited-edition-box-set
  24. https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/When-a-Stranger-Calls-Back-Blu-ray/232033/
  25. https://inpoortaste.ca/when-a-stranger-calls-back-blu-ray-review-scream-factory/
  26. https://www.primevideo.com/detail/When-a-Stranger-Calls-Back/0TELGQOMOYNON3KC6VZ5OD7D7B
  27. https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/when-a-stranger-calls-back/umc.cmc.815x9bzg7oljwp8jt6lbs0qi
  28. https://www.amazon.co.uk/When-Stranger-Calls-Back-Kane/dp/B0000065LQ
  29. https://dennisschwartzreviews.com/whenastrangercallsback/
  30. https://horrornews.net/142525/film-review-when-a-stranger-calls-back-1993/
  31. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-10-29/25-best-underrated-horror-movies
  32. http://www.thefilmfile.com/reviews/w/06_whenastrangercalls.htm
  33. https://pod.wave.co/podcast/stuff-you-should-know/short-stuff-the-call-is-coming-from-inside-the-house
  34. https://www.hysteria-lives.co.uk/hysterialives/Hysteria/when_a_stranger_calls.html
  35. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt21650980/
  36. https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/when-a-stranger-calls-back
  37. https://metrovoicenews.com/15th-annual-slash-n-bash-horror-sci-fi-film-festival-going-on-in-lawrence-with-celebrity-appearances/
  38. https://nighttidemag.com/2025/07/07/morbid-minds-framing-the-genre-when-a-stranger-calls-calls-back/
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