When A
Stranger
Calls/When A
Stranger Calls
Back
Have you checked
the children?
Release 17 December
Director Fred Walton
Cast Carol Kane, Charles Durning,
Rutanya Alda
Distributor Second Sight
Certificate 12Along with Bob Cla rk’s Black
Christmas, When A Stranger Calls is
responsible for making a generation of
teenagers afraid to answer the phone.
Carol Kane stars in the spin on the urban
legend as a babysitter who receives a series of
threatening phone calls asking if she’s checked
the children and... well, we all know what
happens next. While the mid-section of the film,
which follows the villain and a cop’s (CharlesShe-Ra And
The Princesses
of Power
P is for progressive,
not just princess
Release Out now
Creator Noelle Stevenson
Cast Aimee Carrero, Karen Fukuhara,
AJ Michalka, Marcus Scribner
Distributor Netflix
Certificate PG
Format VODAdapted by comic artist Noelle
Stevenson, She-Ra And The Princesses
Of Power follows the Eighties show
on which it’s based closely, only in
the sense that it’s about a young woman who
was raised by a tyrant, and leads a rebellion
against his Evil Horde after she discovers she
can transform into a superheroine when in
possession of a mystical sword. This time, she
doesn’t have a brother in He-Man – this girl’sNoelle Stevenson
has four seasons
of She-Ra plotted out.Durning) attempts to track him down, doesn’t
have the same raw terror as the opening and
finale, this is still a brilliantly made chiller that
taps into a very primal fear. You’ll find yourself
on the edge of your seat ever time the phone
rings and a trembling Kane goes to answer
it, and it’s great to see it given such a lovely
restoration by Second Sight.
In addition to interviews (including chats
with Walton and Kane), they’ve also thrown in
the hugely underrated sequel When A Stranger
Calls Back and the original short film. Turn
out the lights and treat yourself to a great scare
courtesy of a true genre classic.
Jonathan Hatfull
saving the world on her own.
Well, not all on her own. Perhaps the greatest
thing about She-Ra is how much it champions
friendship. Even snarky antagonist Catra has a
history with the titular character that examines
what can happen when companions head down
very different paths.
Its bright rainbowtastic visuals fit in with
its sweet message of acceptance and standing
up for what you believe in, while its excitable
Pokemon-style pacing moves the plot along
effectively. However, it’s fair to say that the
show needed a little more tension throughout in
order to appeal to older audiences.
Amy West
My
Neighbour
Totoro – 30
th
Anniversary
Edition
All aboard the catbus
Release Out now
Director Hayao Miyazaki
Cast Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto,
Shigesato Itoi, Sumi Shimamoto
Distributor Studiocanal
Certificate UTrying to pick your
favourite Studio Ghibli
film is like trying to
pick your favourite
child, but if we were really backed
against a wall and forced to choose, the
chances are good that we’d go with My
Neighbour Totoro. Miyazaki’s beautifully
sweet, gentle and heartfelt tale of
two children who find and befriend a
giant fluffy woodland spirit while their
mother is ill in the hospital is endlessly
rewatchable. With its deceptive
simplicity and graceful fantasy, it just
never loses a drop of magic. The music,
the design, the sequence at the bus
stop... it’s one of the filmmaker’s best,
and that is no small feat.
While the disc in Studiocanal’s new
set remains the same, there’s a wealth of
new extras with a 176 page hardback
book The Art Of My Neighbour Totoro,
plus artcards, a tote bag, a notebook...
all in one giant box. Perhaps a little
extravagant to gift to yourself, but if
you know a Ghibli fan who hasn’t yet
upgraded their DVD, this could be the
best way to treat them.
Jonathan Hatfull
ReviewS home film // Tv
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