When a Stranger Calls
- R
- Year:
- 1979
- 97 min
- 740 Views
FADE IN:
A quiet upper-middle class neighborhood. The CAMERA is at
the curb, looking down the street. There are no sidewalks.
Trees arch overhead. CICADAS drone on the soundtrack.
The OPENING TITLES briefly FADE IN and OUT, framed by the
trees on either side of the street. Footsteps are heard
approaching.
As the picture TITLE FADES, out of the dark emerges a GIRL
17 years old, carrying schoolbooks. This is JILL. CAMERA
PANS with her ninety degrees as she comes to the front of a
house and stops.
Lights are on in the bottom half of the house, and the
curtains across the windows are open. A single light burns
in the upper right side of the house, presumable in a bedroom,
but the curtains in the room are drawn.
A scene TITLE appears on the lower half of the screen:
8 pm Tuesday, March 23, 1971
The TITLE FADES, and Jill heads up the walk to the front
door of the house.
The light in the upper floor of the house is turned off.
A middle-aged DOCTOR is standing at the foot of the stairs.
His WIFE is descending the stairs, putting on her earrings.
She is in an obvious hurry.
WIFE:
Where's the girl?
DOCTOR:
I only called her ten minutes ago --
WIFE:
(passing into living
room)
I made our reservation for 8:15.
We're going to be late.
The doorbell rings.
DOCTOR:
Here she is now.
He crosses to the front door and opens it. The girl smiles
at him uncomfortably from outside.
JILL:
Dr. Minakis?
DOCTOR:
Mandrakis. It's okay. Everyone gets
it wrong the first time. You're Jill?
Come on in.
JILL:
(entering)
Thank you.
The wife comes back into the front hall.
WIFE:
I've written the number of the
restaurant on the notepad by the
phone.
(to Doctor)
Zip me up, will you please?
(to Jill)
If we aren't home in two hours, it
means we've decided to go on to a
movie and won't be back until after
midnight. Is that all right?
JILL:
Sure.
DOCTOR:
(helping wife on with
her coat)
I've told my service to pick up any
calls coming in to my office phone.
WIFE:
The children are asleep upstairs --
first door on your left at the top
of the landing. They're both just
getting over a cold -- so try not to
wake them.
JILL:
Okay.
WIFE:
Do you have any questions?
Jill shakes her head.
WIFE:
We have to go now. We're late.
They cross to the front door and begin to exit.
DOCTOR:
Make yourself at home. The
refrigerator's loaded.
WIFE:
(pulling doctor through
the door)
Goodbye.
The doctor pokes his head back through the door.
DOCTOR:
We even have some low-fat yogurt.
WIFE (O.S.)
Will you please come on!
DOCTOR:
Bye.
The doctor pulls the door shut behind him. Jill turns toward
the living room. Pause. She walks into the living room and
sets her books down on a table with the telephone on it.
O.S. we hear the car doors close, the engine start up, then
the car backing out the driveway and heading down the street.
CUT TO:
It is dark. O.S. we hear the phone in the living room being
lifted off its receiver, a dial tone, then a number is dialed.
Pause, then ringing. CAMERA SLOWLY DOLLIES from the dining
room, across the front hall and into the living room where
we see Jill talking over the phone to a girlfriend, NANCY.
NANCY (O.S.)
Hello?
JILL:
Nancy?
NANCY (O.S.)
Hello, Jill? How's it going?
(out of phone)
I got it, Dad!
(beat)
Father!
(into phone again)
Jesus Christ! My father's in one of
his moods again. Male menopause, you
know. So how are you?
JILL:
All right.
NANCY (O.S.)
Are you over at Dr. Mandrakis'?
JILL:
Yeah, I've been here for about an
hour already.
NANCY (O.S.)
Isn't it a neat house?
JILL:
I guess... I haven't looked around
very much.
NANCY (O.S.)
Did you see his kids?
JILL:
No, they were asleep when I got here.
NANCY (O.S.)
They're really cute. So what can I
do for you?
JILL:
You didn't happen to talk to Billy
today, did you?
NANCY (O.S.)
Yeah, I talked to him.
JILL:
Pause.
NANCY (O.S.)
I don't know what you did to him, or
said to him, or what... but he's
really pissed off at you! What did
you do?
JILL:
It's what I didn't do.
NANCY (O.S.)
(sarcastic)
Yeah, I can imagine.
JILL:
Do me a favor, Nance.
NANCY (O.S.)
What.
JILL:
Do you think you'll be talking with
Billy some time tonight?
NANCY (O.S.)
Prabably. I'm going to the library
in a few minutes. I just have to get
out of this house!
(beat)
Hey! Why don't Billy and I come over
there? He'll come along if I tell
him to.
JILL:
That isn't what I had in mind.
NANCY (O.S.)
You'll be safe with Billy. I'll be
there. Come on.
JILL:
Nancy, all you want to do is come
over here and get drunk.
NANCY (O.S.)
Who? Me?
JILL:
(mimicking)
Who? Me?
NANCY (O.S.)
You want to see Billy, don't you?!
JILL:
I've got a lot of work to do. I don't
want you coming over!
Long pause.
NANCY (O.S.)
You know what your problem is, Jill,
is you're so straight. I really mean
that. You go to a private school,
you wear a bra. No one can have a
good time with you!
(beat)
You know, Billy asked me to go out
with him this weekend, and I was
really really tempted because I like
Billy... a lot... as much as you do.
But I told him I couldn't, that I
didn't think it was right because
you were my friend --
JILL:
You are my friend.
Pause.
NANCY (O.S.)
Yeah. I guess so.
JILL:
Listen, just give Billy the number
here, but don't tell him I told you
to. Okay?
Pause.
NANCY (O.S.)
Okay. I've got to go now.
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"When a Stranger Calls" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Apr. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/when_a_stranger_calls_1008>.
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