The original When A Stranger Calls is the stuff of legend, largely because of how downright terrifying the opening act is. We know the story of the babysitter who receives threatening phone calls, only to have the calls end up coming from inside the house. It's a popular urban legend, and was effectively brought to the screen (kinda) in Bob Clark's Black Christmas. But writer/director Fred Walton, and co-writer Steve Feke, breathed new life into the tale, and expertly crafted it into the film's opening 20 minutes, which are among the most tense put on film. Ditto the conclusion, where Carole Kane's babysitter -- now grown up with kids of her own -- is again tormented by the mysterious caller. So, all told, When A Stranger Calls offers about 40 minutes of pure horror goodness. It's the middle act I liked the least when I first watched When A Stranger Calls decades ago, but I have a new appreciation for it now. This sequence follows the caller, chillingly brou...

We all know the story of the babysitter who receives chilling phone calls that come from inside the house she's staying at. It's a popular urban legend that's been used to great effect in a variety of films, Fred Walton's 1979 shocker When a Stranger Calls -- and its 2006 remake -- chief among them. What you might not know is When a Stranger Calls has a sequel, a 1993 TV movie once again directed by Walton, and once again starring Carol Kane and Charles Durning. And it's really, really good! Kane plays herself 14 years after the events of the first film. She's now a college counsellor who comes to the aid of a young woman who, five years prior, shared a similar terrifying incident to hers... and the stalker/killer might be targeting her again. Much like its predecessor, When a Stranger Calls Back has a terrifying opening where we see what this new victim (played by the always effective Jill Schoelen) endured. These 26 minutes are a masterwork of suspense...