1979 WHEN A STRANGER CALLS Movie Pressbook: 20 Pages 14" x 8-1/2"

Description

1979 WHEN A STRANGER CALLS Movie Pressbook: 20 Pages 14" x 8-1/2"
Good condition with small tear on front cover. Please see the photos.
20 Pages including front and back covers.
When a Stranger Calls
is a 1979 American
mystery
thriller film
written and directed by
Fred Walton
and co-written by Steve Feke. It stars
Carol Kane
,
Colleen Dewhurst
,
Tony Beckley
and
Charles Durning
. The film derives its story from the classic folk legend of "
the babysitter and the man upstairs
".
The film has developed a large
cult following
over time because of the first 20 minutes, now consistently regarded as one of the scariest openings in movie history. The first 12 minutes of
Wes Craven
's
Scream
(1996) is an homage to the opening of
When a Stranger Calls
.
The film was released in the United States on September 28, 1979, by
Columbia Pictures
. It was commercially successful, grossing million at the box office. It received a mixed critical reception, with many praising the opening scene and performances, but criticism for its writing and lack of scares. It was followed by the 1993 made-for-cable sequel
When a Stranger Calls Back
and
a remake
in 2006.
Plot
Jill Johnson (
Carol Kane
) is babysitting the children of Dr. Mandrakis (
Carmen Argenziano
) at his home. When the children are asleep, Jill receives a telephone call from a man who asks her if she has checked the children. Jill initially dismisses the telephone calls as a practical joke. However, as the calls become more frequent and threatening, Jill becomes frightened and decides to call the police, who tell Jill to keep the caller on the line long enough for them to trace the call. Jill receives one final call from her stalker. Immediately after the conversation, the police phone to inform her that the calls are coming from a phone inside the house. Jill runs to the door as a light comes on at the top of the staircase, and the stalker's shadow appears. The scene segues to a close-up of detective John Clifford (
Charles Durning
), who is investigating the matter. Patrol officer Charlie Garber (
Ron O'Neal
) explains that Jill is unharmed, but the children were murdered by the perpetrator several hours earlier, before Jill's ordeal even started. The killer is identified as an English merchant seaman named Curt Duncan (
Tony Beckley
), who is subsequently sent to an asylum.
Seven years later, Duncan escapes from the asylum. Dr. Mandrakis hires Clifford, now a private investigator, to find Duncan. Not knowing Clifford is after him, Duncan is now homeless. He is beaten after disturbing a woman, Tracy (
Colleen Dewhurst
), in a downtown bar, and later follows her to her apartment. Tracy takes pity on him and tries to be nice to him while getting him to leave, hoping this will be the last she sees of him.
Meanwhile, an increasingly obsessed Clifford confides to his friend (now Lieutenant) Garber his intention to kill Duncan rather than arrest him. Garber, who was also present in the Mandrakis crime scene, agrees to collaborate. Clifford follows the trail to the bar where Duncan was beaten, and from there to Tracy's residence. Clifford tells Tracy just how dangerous her situation has become, revealing that Duncan had literally torn apart the Mandrakis children with his bare hands. Tracy reluctantly agrees to be Clifford's bait at the bar that evening should Duncan reappear. Clifford surreptitiously follows Tracy from the bar to her apartment, but sees no sign of Duncan. After Clifford leaves, however, Duncan comes out of hiding from inside Tracy’s closet. Tracy screams for help. Clifford returns and chases Duncan away from the scene, losing his trail in the streets of downtown Los Angeles.
Jill Lockart (née Johnson) is now married with two young children. One night, she and her husband Stephen (Steven Anderson) go to dinner to celebrate a promotion while their children are babysat by Sharon (Lenora May). At the restaurant, Jill gets a telephone call and hears Duncan's voice again: "Have you checked the children?". She panics and calls Sharon; nothing seems to be wrong at first, but then the call is suddenly disconnected. The police escort Jill back home to discover that everything there is fine. Clifford is tipped off by Garber, however, and tries to call Jill, but finds that the line is disconnected. Later that night, Jill goes downstairs for a glass of milk when the lights suddenly go out. She returns to bed and hears Duncan's voice as the closet door appears to open. Jill tries shaking her husband awake only to realize that the man lying next to her is Duncan. Duncan chases Jill across the room and attempts to kill her when Clifford arrives and fatally shoots Duncan. Jill’s husband Stephen is revealed to be in the closet, unconscious but alive. Their children are safe. As Clifford comforts Jill, the last view is of the house, superimposed beneath the eyes of Curt Duncan.
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