(Long Island, N. Y.) I’m not a fan of Halle Berry. In fact, I consider her one of the worst actresses working today. It’s just my opinion, Halle Berry fans. Don’t take it personally. It’s hard to explain why I feel the way I do. Is it her wooden delivery? Her lack of range? How she feels fake in almost every role? Again, it’s just my opinion, but Berry’s presence in any movie just serves to instantly take me out of it.
Well…until now. After not appearing in many mainstream films in a while (at least, not any that I’m aware of), Berry pops up in The Call, a thriller film directed by Brad Anderson, and much to my shock, is surprisingly effective in her role as a 911 operator who gets involved in solving a kidnapping perpetrated by a vicious serial killer (Michael Eklund). But while Berry shows abilities I feel she has previously lacked, that doesn’t prevent The Call from pretty much falling apart in its second half, unfortunately.
Halle plays Jordan Turner, a police hotline employee who one day fields a call from a teenage girl hiding under her bed from a home invading serial killer. Jordan’s attempt to help backfires, allowing the killer to find the girl, and she is found dead several days later. Naturally, Jordan blames herself and as the saying goes, those who can’t do, teach; after her screw-up, Jordan instead becomes a 911 call center trainer instead, as she can no longer deal with taking calls.
Later, another call comes into the hotline as a result of the same serial
killer, courtesy of his latest kidnapping victim who is currently stuffed into the trunk of his car. When the rookie operator on the call is clearly in over their head, Jordan is forced to jump in and take over. From there, Jordan is determined to make up for her pervious folly, and does everything in her
power to prevent another young lady from falling to
this crazed murderer.
What is so different about
Berry this time around, you ask? It’s hard to say…I think it’s just seeing Berry playing an “every-woman” who has to react, not to another on-screen person, but a phone headset, that bring out her acting strengths. It’s not an Oscar-caliber performance, but it’s certainly turned around my opinion of her. Maybe.
The Call does a very solid job of establishing a tense, suspenseful atmosphere for its first half. Things take place solely over the phone between Berry’s character and the killer’s newest victim, with the veteran 911 operator desperately trying to ascertain the girl’s whereabouts before it’s too late…it’s gripping stuff, and Berry’s frantic concern
and vulnerability really help to sell the premise completely.
However, The Call completely loses it in its second half, when Berry sheds the headset and sets out on her own to solve the crime. Yeah…this is pretty much as stupid as it sounds. From there onward, the movie just pretty much loses all its momentum and becomes a cliché-ridden, by-the-numbers thriller and completely unbelievable. Just terrible, especially considering how very decent the first half was; the borderline outlandish turn the second half takes basically ruins the great strides the previous half made in drawing you in.
So…if you’re in the mood for a tight little crime drama and a surprise good performance
from Halle Berry, you can do a lot worse than The Call…just walk out halfway through and make up your own ending. It’ll be better than anything you see if you remain in the theater, believe me.
