When a Stranger Calls Back (1993) - full transcript

- Hi.
- The bell's broken.

Come on in.

- Hi, Julia.
- Hi.

- You are saving our lives.
- We're late.

We're going to a friend's house for dinner
but they live out at the beach,

so I don't expect we're gonna be home
until 11.00, 11.30.

- Is that OK?
- Sure.

Your parents coming to pick you up?

My brother but he's gonna wait
till I call him.

- OK.
- We're late.

The kids are asleep already.
Do you remember where their room is?



- I'll find it.
- How do I look?

You look late. Beautiful, but late.

I've left the number where we're going
to be on the door of the fridge.

OK. Bye-bye.

And, Julia, thanks again for coming
on such short notice. Bye.

Bye.

Hello?

Hello?

I think you have the wrong number.

You do have the wrong number.

Yes? Who is it?

Hi.

Um, you don't know me.

My car's broken down



and I was wondering if I could
come in and use the phone.

Who do you want to call?

The auto club. I'm a member.
They'll send someone out to help me.

It'll only take a minute.

Just to come in and make one call.

I won't bother you again.

I'll call them for you.

I can do it. I don't want to put you
through any trouble.

You can trust me.

It's OK.

What do you want me to tell them?

You're gonna need to write this down.

- I'm back.
- OK.

My name is Stephen Dane.

Mm-hm.

Card number 245...

38...

142...

0020.

And that expires at the end of August
of this year.

OK.

Just tell them the name of the street,
a block north of Franklin,

and I may need a tow.
The car, it won't start.

Won't they need to know
what kind of car it is?

Uh, it's a black Chevy Impala, 1983.

- Licence number NYZ-662.
- Uh-huh.

You don't know the number
of the auto club, do you?

I think it's 555-6800.

OK. I'll be right back.

Hello?

Did you call them?

Yes. They said they'd be here
in about an hour.

An hour?

They always say they'll come within
30 minutes. What's going on?

That's what they told me.

Maybe it's a busy night, or...

Yeah. Maybe.

OK. Thanks. I appreciate it.

Who is it?

They didn't come.

It's me. The auto club hasn't come.

I'm sorry.

Listen, can I just come in and talk
to them, give them a call?

No. I'm sorry. I can't do that.

Then would you call them
again for me, please?

Sure.

OK. Do you still have all the information
I gave you?

Licence plate, card number,
all that stuff?

Yes.

Hold on. I'll... I'll go call them again.

Hello, auto club?

Yeah.

We called before, about an hour ago,
and you never came.

What's the deal?

Well, we've been waiting here.

I mean why don't you try
and get a move on?

Some of us haven't got all night,
you know what I mean?

Yes.

The name is blah blah blah.

Black Chevy Impala,
blah blah blah blah.

Licence plate, blah blah blah,
card number, blah blah blah.

Blah blah blah blah.

And, um, while you're at it...

Why don't you call my brother
and tell him to come over?

I could use the company.

Please?

OK, I called them again.

Are you there?

Hello?

What do you want?

You never called them, did you?

You never called the auto club.

Yes, I did. Of course I did.

I don't believe you.

Why don't you go bother the people
next door? Some other house on this block?

I have. They're not home.
Nobody else is home on this street.

Just you.

I can't even see your car
out the window.

You've been looking out the window?

Yes.

I don't see any car.

It's down the block.

Don't you believe me?

Look.

I've done what I could for you.

Why don't you just go away
and leave me alone?

I'm sorry.

Listen, I'm stuck here.

Could you do me one more favour
and call my wife,

tell her what's happened
and not to worry?

Would you do that, please?

All right.

Give her my card number.

Tell her to call the auto club.
Maybe she'll have better luck.

Do you still have the information
I gave you written down somewhere?

Yes.

OK.

The number's 555-4370.

Did you call her?

Yes.

There was no answer.

Are you sure?

Yes.

Are you OK in there?

Yes.

All right.

Well, thanks.
You've done what you could.

I'm sorry to bother you.

Go away! Leave me alone! Please!

Listen to me very carefully.

You don't live here, do you?

You're just a babysitter.

Have you been upstairs
in the last five minutes?

Why?

I don't think you're alone in this house.

Someone's upstairs.

I've seen them moving around
through the windows.

You should get out of there...
now.

Come on out, Julia.

I never told you my name!

Don't stay in there.

- I'm warning you.
- Where...?

Where are you?
What have you done with them?

I'm hiding.

In the bushes.

What?

Why?

He's in there with you.

Look into the living room.

Please believe me!
I'm telling you the truth!

I've dealt with the police before.

I know you think I'm depressed...

I'm not making this up!

- What's going on?
- I don't know.

She keeps talking about something
that happened five years ago.

Is there a record on it?

Take a few days to get up here
if it exists.

Want me to put in a request?

No.

Call the university. Tell them we have
a hysterical co-ed on our hands.

Have them send someone over
from the dean or women's office.

- OK.
- Oh...

- Anyone but Johnson.
- Yeah!

Hey, Johnson.

Thanks for calling.
Didn't take me long, did it?

It's OK. She's calmed down quite a bit.

She was badly traumatised five years ago.

What are you? Clairvoyant?

I got files. In there?

Julia, I'm Jill.

I'm director of the women's services
here on campus.

How are you doing?

I'm OK.

Now, I was brought in on this
a little late

so I don't know what you've already told
these gentlemen.

So if you wouldn't mind repeating it
for me from the beginning?

How... How far back you want me to go?

Just the recent stuff here at school.

OK.

I came here two years ago, as a freshman
in the Liberal Arts programme.

I stopped going home
after the first summer.

I got an apartment off campus

and I've been there for about
a year and a half.

Almost four months ago...

I can give you an exact date
if you want it.

...I noticed that this book of mine,
this book of poems, it...

it wasn't on the shelf where I keep it.

Where was it?

Well, it was on the shelf.

It just wasn't in the place
where I always keep it.

It had been moved.

Go ahead.

I didn't think much of it at the time.

I mean, I noticed it.
I just didn't get... concerned.

Then, about six weeks ago, I was suddenly
awakened at 3.00 in the morning.

My alarm clock was going off.

I didn't set that alarm.

This afternoon...

...I came home to my apartment

and I discovered hanging in my closet
a shirt that doesn't belong to me.

It's a child's shirt.

I came here.

My door is triple-bolted.

I live up on the third storey.

Is that all?

Don't you see?

Somebody has gotten in
three times in the last four months.

Someone has been in my apartment

and they have done things, little things,

to let me know that he's there.

Didn't you just say that you keep
the front door triple-locked?

And your apartment is three storeys up
from the ground?

Yes! Yes.

Yes.

Hell of an effort
for someone to move a book.

Julia, would you mind stepping
outside for just a minute?

You all heard the same thing I did, right?
So what's to talk about?

Does she have a psychiatric record
or something? Paranoid delusions?

What about this incident five years ago?

Some sort of harassment thing.

- Did they catch the guy?
- Apparently not.

But what do I know?

He's still running around in her mind,
that's for sure.

I believe her.

What?

I believe her.

The incident five years ago
was more than a harassment thing.

Two children disappeared and they haven't
been found yet, dead or alive.

Yes, she does have a psychiatric record,
and a pretty extensive one.

She was responsible for those children
and she barely escaped with her own life.

I would be willing to bet that
her apartment is pretty bare.

Not cluttered.

You would know if a book had been moved.

You know exactly how many socks
you have in a drawer.

How many matches are
in the box by the stove.

You don't mistake those things

and the terrifying thing is, apparently...

...he knows you don't.

Julia?

Will you come with me?

- Nice place.
- Thank you.

I'm not real comfortable with narrow
corridors and small spaces,

nooks and crannies.

Won't you have a seat?
I'll make us some tea.

Oh...

Want to call your parents and let them
know what's going on?

They're divorced.

I know.

How?

How do you know about me?

I've known about you since the day
you set foot on campus.

It's my job.

Julia, when I was a girl...

I went through something
very similar to your experience.

I was babysitting in a strange house.

And the children I was responsible for
were murdered.

The police caught the man.

It took me a long time to get over it.

Couldn't be alone.

Julia, I don't think that the police
are going to get involved.

Not at this stage.

I would like to call in someone
to consult.

An old friend of mine.

I haven't seen him in years, but I think
he will come down now if I ask him.

And in the meantime,

I want you to know you can stay here
with me

until you feel that you're ready
to go back to your own apartment.

We will get you through this.

Bus 92 now loading at ramp seven.

- Hey!
- John!

Julia, come here.

Julia, come on.

- This is John Clifford. This is Julia.
- Hi. How are you? Pleasure.

John!

There were two men?

Yes. Two.

One of whom she only heard, never saw.

I saw him once

through the window the first time
he came to the door, but it was dark.

Which window?

The living room.

There was a window in the living room
that the police found open

but only six to eight inches,

and there was never
any explanation for it.

Is it possible...

that the man who was talking to you
outside the door...

...came into the living room
through that window?

No.

No, he was right outside the door.

I'd been listening to him there all night.

And when he said to look
into the living room, I looked.

I didn't wait.

I turned to my side and there he was,
the other one.

He was right there.

The police never believed
that there was a man outside

because the doctor came home
just then.

Did they have some other theory?

No.

I guess I didn't lock it when I left.

I was scared and...

I just ran right to the police.

That's OK.

Anything changed?

No.

- Your hanger?
- Yeah.

Jill, I can stay here now.

You sure?

Yes.

I mean, the next time could be tomorrow
or next month.

It could be five years from now,
couldn't it?

I want a life.

Crisis Centre hotline.

- Wait a minute. Slow down.
- Pen!

Do you need the police?

Crisis Centre.

Hah!

Situations do arise where there is
no one around to help you

and you have to defend yourself
by whatever means necessary.

You cannot say that you don't believe
in violence

unless you also say you don't believe
in living.

They just came up
along with these old reports.

It's eerie, isn't it?

Why the five years, John, do you think,
between then and now?

Guy could have been doing time
for something else.

Could have gone away, could have lost
track of her, could have lost interest.

Could have gone off
with these children alive.

Mm-hm.

There can be a thousand reasons
with a psychopath.

I'm assuming that one of them
had training as a locksmith.

It's possible. It's not difficult to open
a lock if you know what you're doing.

What about the shirt?

Nothing yet.

No prints on the hanger.

I'm sure he wouldn't have left anything
that could be traced back to him.

Why do you keep saying "him"?

I don't believe there were two men.

Why not?

It's a feeling.

You know...

...I kind of wish it is two men this time.

Twice as easy to find?

Not just that.

If it is only one,

then he's got something going for him
we haven't even begun to imagine.

Hello?

- Julia, what's the matter?
- I thought I saw somebody in the window.

I heard this noise and it woke me up
and I looked...

Where exactly in your apartment are you?

I'm on the bed.

Are there any lights on?

Just the lamp beside my bed.

What do you see?

Nothing.

What do you hear now?

Nothing.

Is your window closed?

Yes.

- Locked?
- Yes.

And the door?

I can't tell. It must be.

Julia, listen to me.
Don't assume anything.

Put the phone down
and secure the apartment.

Look into the kitchen,
then the bathroom.

Turn on the light.

Look inside.

Then the closet.

Then go to the front door
and make sure it's locked.

OK.

And I want you to talk to me
the entire time.

Tell me exactly where you are,
what you're doing.

All right?

All right.

I'm going into the kitchen now.

There's nothing there.

Now I'm going towards the bathroom.

I'm turning on the light.

Julia?

Julia?

Julia!

I'm back.

Good.

The door was locked.

All right.

Now I want you to turn off the light.

OK.

And look out the window.

I don't see anything.

Are you sure?

Yeah.

I probably imagined this whole thing.

It's possible.

But please do call me if you're concerned
about anything else, any time.

OK.

Thank you.

John, it's me. It's Jill.

Julia just phoned.

Julia...

do you own a gun?

Keep it pointing down.

Every night, I go to bed

hoping that tomorrow, somehow,
things are gonna be different.

That I'm gonna be somebody else.

With a different life.

Somebody with friends.

A person with a future.

Who isn't alone.

A person who maybe has someone.

And then I wake up.

Julia...

don't let the future close in on you.

Mr Clifford...

Do you think that I'm...
I'm doing the right thing?

I mean, I could...

I could run away.

Try and disappear.

Then maybe they wouldn't find me.

I can't make that choice for you.
I'm sorry.

- Crisis Centre...
- Those are my files...

- What's your name?
- You go on over there now...

- Isn't she supposed to be here?
- Has anyone seen Julia?

Not at her apartment.

I just can't believe
that she wouldn't call me.

Maybe she's avoiding you.

Jill...

are you sure she hasn't...

created something that isn't there?

What do you mean?

A book? An open window?

Explanations are getting
pretty hard to come by.

John, what is happening
to Julia is real.

Then it's too much for her.
She's coming apart and I can't blame her.

I don't think she should be made
to confront it this way.

What choice does she have?
What choice do any of us have?

Is she back at her apartment?

Alone?

I made her promise she would stay
at my apartment.

The women at the Centre are going to be
checking on her.

- Mr Clifford?
- Yes.

- Susie Hart.
- Jill Johnson.

You must have some pull with the police
down here.

I appreciate your cooperation.

Glad to be of help, but just close
the door when you're finished.

Thank you.

This is the window.

It was open... six inches.

That made 15 feet.

Fifteen feet.
That's an easy distance.

He manipulated his voice so that
she believed he was outside.

And he never was, not at the end.

That's why the doctor never saw anyone.

He was inside the house with her.

This is gonna sound crazy, but...

...we're looking for a ventriloquist.

Left the kitchen door open.

It's Julia.

She shot herself.

You can see the bullet entered the skull
here just above the right ear,

leaving a number of lead fragments.

There are extensive powder burns
at the point of entry,

indicating the close range.

It exited this area here.

What was the weapon?

We already got the forensic report on
the slug. They dug it out of the ceiling.

It was from a 9mm registered in her name.

We found it right beside her.

Yeah. It's amazing she's still alive.

Can she talk?

No.

Will she be able to? I mean someday?

Do you believe in God?

I've seen a lot of these cases.

I worked in Miami until three years ago

and people check themselves
out all the time.

When did it happen?

The nearest we could figure,
about 2.00 in the morning.

I should have been home with her.

Don't you know?

She was in her own apartment.

Why? Why would she come back here?

John.

This is dated last night.

"It's dark. I can't see. No phone.
Jill, where are you?"

I don't think it proves anything.

What do you think, then?

Instincts will only take you so far.

Then you have to rely on evidence,
and there isn't any.

This is evidence. Read it.

I've read it.

Read it again.

"It's dark. No phone." What do you think
that means, "no phone"?

It was taken out, like five years ago.

The phone is working.

Today. What about last night at 2.00am?

"It's dark."
What do you think that means?

Does it say in there why
she went back to her apartment?

Does it?

- Jill...
- Mmm...

She tried to kill herself.

What if you're wrong?

There's nothing more I can do.

And even if I'm wrong,
he won't be around any more.

He is out there somewhere.
He will go after someone else.

I'm sorry. I'm going home.

I don't know why he didn't just
finish the job and kill her.

Jill. Jill!

Julia?

It's me. It's Jill.

I'm with you.

And you're getting better.

I know it.

Those stupid doctors,
they don't believe it, but...

they don't know you like I know you.

Julia...

We'll get him.

Somehow I promise you...

...I will get him.

Hello, Jill.

I said hello, Jill.

Hey, Edgar Bergen is dead.

Charlie McCarthy, Mortimer Snerd,
nobody wants acts like that any more.

There must be others.
Where would I look?

I don't know. Burlesque theatres,
bar mitzvahs...

You could try those places
around 159th Street.

Jesus is knocking
on the door of your heart.

Wanna go out, honey?

Jesus is knocking...

Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands
together for The Great Landis.

Can you just hold the spot?
Don't move it?

How many times have you
looked at yourself in the mirror

and asked yourself,

"Who am I going to be today?"

"What face will I show the world?"

It is said that God created man
in his own image.

I looked in the mirror this morning.

And this is what I saw.

Of course there are other mirrors

besides the one above your bathroom sink,
aren't there?

The woman sitting out there
knows the truest one,

the mirror that most reflects
the person she wants to be,

despite all the make-up she uses,
and hairstyles and clothes...

...is in the eyes of the man
who loves her.

Ooh!

And maybe,
for the college boys, the truest mirror

is the toilet bowl staring back at them
the morning after a toga party.

I don't know.

We live our lives in a land of mirrors,
don't we?

Everyone we meet,
everything we see and feel,

from the blank ceiling above our heads
to the eyes averted on the street

to the close, sweaty smell
of rooms like this.

- They tell us who we are...
- That's enough!

Without them,
you become like me.

Cut it! That's it!

I'm not a reflection of anything.
I am not an illusion. I am the truth.

- Tony!
- I'm invisible. Unknowable.

You people are the real illusionists.

You people are the real illusionists!

Yeah!

Whoo!

What the fuck was that? What? You crazy?

I'm gonna get you arrested.

- Please.
- Fuck you.

Look, I'll do it right. I need the money.

You need money?

You need money?
You can lick the stinking toilet.

Wait...

There's your goddamn plumber!

Jesus!

Toilet's over here.

Hasn't worked in three days.

- Yeah!
- Legs like that... yes!

Did you see her? Huh?

Yeah, baby! Looking good! Oh, yeah!

Whoo!

I liked it.

I liked your act.

Nothing's an act.

Just get the hell out of here.
Come on! Out! Out!

Mr Landis?

They told me about your act inside.

I missed it.

Where are you going?

I want to talk to you.

I want to give you a job.
I want to hire you.

Wait!

Er...

Can you tell me if Mr Landis
lives down there?

William Landis? He's a ventriloquist.

He's gone.

What do you mean?

Moved out.

For good? When?

Poor guy.

Come out here, children that died.

Wanted to find their mother,
tell her about it.

Did he find her?

I think so.

Thanks.

Jill?

Yeah.

You all right?

Yes, I just need a little time to think.
I'm fine. Thank you for asking.

You sure?

I'm fine.

Operator.

Yes, operator. Can you dial
a local number for me, please?

What is the number, please?

555-2348.

Let me try it for you.

Thank you.

I'm sorry, sir. There seems to be
some problem with that line.

What sort of problem?

I don't know, sir. A crossed line or
a temporary disconnect.

I'll make a report of it.

Jill.

Jill.

Jill.

How does it feel?

We're all alone now, Jill.

Help me, Jill.

It's dark.

I can't see.

No phone.

Jill, where are you?

- Jill.
- I'm here.

I'm here.

Jill.

Where... Where are you?

I'm here, Jill.

Where are you?

It's dark, Jill. I can't see!

Agh! Agh!

Jill!

Jill!

Where's the gun?

Thank God.

Jill... Jill...

Jill.

Jill?

Jill?

Jill.

You're OK?

Is he dead?

He's dead.

Dr Philips, 4721, Dr Philips, 4721...

OK.

They were gonna give you a private room.

I just figured you'd get better faster
if you had somebody to talk to.

Hmm.

Julia?

Mmm?