Babycall

Ich hatte das Glück, dass ich von Anfang an keinen Horror erwartet habe, obwohl es für jemanden nach Horror riechen könnte. Das ist hauptsächlich ein Drama (ein wenig gestörte Mutter droht die Entziehung ihres achtjährigen Sohnes durch die Sozialbehörde) mit mysteriösem Touch, denn nichts ist so, wie es auf den ersten Blick scheint. Der Film behält das Wichtigste für die letzten ca. 15 Minuten vor, was viele abschrecken mag, aber Sletaune hat als Ass im Ärmel die Besetzung von zwei einsamen Menschen, dargestellt von Noomi Rapace aus der Millennium-Trilogie und Kristoffer Joner (bekannt durch den Regisseur Naboer oder den beängstigenden Villmark). "Babycall" wird sicherlich nicht jedem gefallen: Es baut nicht auf Spannung, Blut oder Schockszenen, aber es hat mich auf seine eigene merkwürdige Art gewonnen. (24.02.2012)

The movie "Babycall" has one crucial strong element for which it is worth watching. And that element is none other than Noomi Rapace, who once again delivers a great performance in the leading role and somewhat overshadows the fact that the movie actually doesn't have much to say and only loosely attempts to be a horror film. This is a great pity because the tension quickly disappears. (27.06.2016)

An unremarkable psycho-thriller with bits of horror that grabs your attention in the first half hour (thick atmosphere and a good performance by Noomi Rapace), only to then turn into the classic tale of “everyone here is crazy, I’m the real Jesus”. It has moments with proper Nordic terror, but the overall impression is, as I’ve said, unremarkable. The previous movie of the director is in another psychological horror league. (10.01.2013)

He wants to entertain everyone and because of that he disappoints everyone. Perfect Noomi is able to create a pleasant thriller atmosphere with only her facial expressions bordering on mental breakdown, but the script undermines her at the most important moments. When I successfully tune in to the quiet drama, scary elements come and when I switch to the paranormal thriller, practically nothing happens for long minutes. This is not a multi-genre film, but an attempt at originality at any cost, which fell apart in the hands of the creators a few minutes before the climax. 50% (17.01.2013)

I don't know. I'm as tense as a dentist's waiting room for most of the film, can't decide if the civilian atmosphere is unsettling me in a good way or a bad one, and after it was over I was still putting two and two together in the bathtub with a wrinkled forehead... and then it dawned on me. The whole point, the whole thing clicked into place and I was confronted with the triviality of the entire plot. While it’s not that bad, it's awfully similar to all that Thai/Korean/Japanese stuff, just a little more Nordic in its aloofness. And when you cook mashed potatoes for 4 hours, the result may not be all bad, but you kind of feel like a moron. (16.04.2013)