The Calling (2014)

Detective Hazel Micallef hasn't had much to worry about in the sleepy town of Fort Dundas until a string of gruesome murders in the surrounding countryside brings her face to face with a serial killer driven by a higher calling.

Director:

Jason Stone

Writers:

Scott Abramovitch, Michael Redhill (novel) (as Inger Ash Wolfe)

Stars:

Susan Sarandon, Gil Bellows, Ellen Burstyn

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Susan Sarandon	...	Hazel Micallef
Gil Bellows	...	Detective Ray Green
Ellen Burstyn	...	Emily Micallef
Topher Grace	...	Ben Wingate
Donald Sutherland	...	Father Price
Christopher Heyerdahl	...	Simon
Kevin Parent	...	Spere
Katy Breier	...	Melanie Cartwright
Paulino Nunes	...	Officer Mathieson
Ted Whittall	...	Ian Mason
Amanda Brugel	...	Officer Vongarner
John Ralston	...	Andrew Pederson
Natalie Radford	...	Glynnis Pederson
Alex Poch-Goldin	...	Bob Chandler
Ella Ballentine	...	Rose Batten

Storyline

Detective Hazel Micallef hasn't had much to worry about in the sleepy town of Fort Dundas until a string of gruesome murders in the surrounding countryside brings her face to face with a serial killer driven by a higher calling.

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Plot Keywords:

prescription drugs | alcoholic cop | serial killer | house fire | bouquet | 

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Taglines:

Pray for the Prey

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violent content, disturbing images and some language

Details

Country:

USA Canada UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 August 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

El llamado

Filming Locations:

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Stage 6 Films, Manis Film, Breaking Ball Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Simon (Christopher Heyerdahl) and Grace Batten (Kristin Booth) first meet in the diner where Grace works, it's the Bright Spot Restaurant on Main Street East in Hamilton.

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Goofs

When Wingate enters the trailer were Gabriel was, he almost throws up because of the stench in there. At the end when the 2 Vancouver cops enter the same trailer, they walk in normally, like there was never any odor.

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Quotes

Rose Batten: I'm going to die, aren't I?
Simon: Hmm. We're all going to die. That's how God intended it. But how we live and how we die, that can be meaningful.

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Connections

References Clue (1985)

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Soundtracks

Prophecy
(uncredited)
Written by Jeffrey Cain Thompson, Cedric Lemoyne, Cinjun Tate, Shelby Tate and Gregory Slay
Performed by Remy Zero

User Reviews

Too routine to recommend, though Sarandon is excellent

The Calling (2014)

It's weird to see how routine this kind of movie has become. And how obvious the influences are. Take "Fargo" and put it Canada (same snow, some parochial setting, and same kind of earthy woman cop). Then remove all the originality and verve, and you have "The Calling."

Serial killers are of course more common in the movies than in real life, thankfully. And they all require weird methods, patterns with exceptions to the pattern, and a single (often painfully solitary) cop on the hunt. Susan Sarandon plays the cop, the good guy if you will, and I actually think she does a great job. If she can't match MacDormand in "Fargo" it's partly or mostly because of the writing and direction. In this movie, director Jason Stone in his first full length film, shows he's still learning. And borrowing from good sources. But we all know the formulae, and need more than that. Where do guys like him get budgets and approvals and a couple of great actors when there are so many talented men—and women!—who have shown more mettle and imagination in the trenches?

What remains isn't a disaster, but it's a bit of a trudge. Don't blame Sarandon, who makes it charming overall. There is an intention toward realism here, and yet the scenes are a combination of grotesque and whimsical. The murders are horrible, and beyond probably what is normal horror though I don't really know how the world of murder works. And the people are so homespun and regular, worried about their coffees of course, that they lighten up the whole movie without making it comic.

So, it's not, for sure, a disaster. I don't know that I'd call that a recommendation. There are better films of this type out there (without going to the top of the genre with "Silence of the Lambs" and so forth). But there are worse!