'Don't Hang Up' also known as 'Don't Open the Door' is an eerie yet very weird low budget horror flick from the 1970's with a simple meandering plot and a quirky oddball nature. This movie is somewhat watchable and had some potential to be a fun trashy cult classic, but the lack of suspense and sluggish pace really bogs things down and doesn't manage to sustain interest throughout its runtime.
The plot = Amanda Post (Susan Bracken) returns to her grandmother's home in Texas to take care of her for the first time in 13 years since the brutal murder of her mother. Once there Amanda finds herself being stalked by a homicidal maniac.
There are some positive aspects of this film such as the production which looks quite stylish for such a low budget feature with some beautiful colourful shots and the house itself is effectively creepy and does give off an unnerving atmosphere. The acting performances here are also decent with some interesting characters such as Susan Bracken who does a decent job as the female lead and Gene Ross also gives a memorable performance. Some of the killer POV shots are quite creepy as well, but despite the interesting build up, everything falls flat as there's too many scenes of boring dialogue and not enough thrills or tension. The last act does at least attempt to spice things up by adding more of the slasher elements into the flick, but even these scenes lack any sort of entertainment as they seem very awkward and poorly handled.
Overall 'Don't Hang Up' is bizarre and sometimes creepy, but there's just simply not enough here to keep the viewer interested as it struggles to hold any sort of momentum.
The plot = Amanda Post (Susan Bracken) returns to her grandmother's home in Texas to take care of her for the first time in 13 years since the brutal murder of her mother. Once there Amanda finds herself being stalked by a homicidal maniac.
There are some positive aspects of this film such as the production which looks quite stylish for such a low budget feature with some beautiful colourful shots and the house itself is effectively creepy and does give off an unnerving atmosphere. The acting performances here are also decent with some interesting characters such as Susan Bracken who does a decent job as the female lead and Gene Ross also gives a memorable performance. Some of the killer POV shots are quite creepy as well, but despite the interesting build up, everything falls flat as there's too many scenes of boring dialogue and not enough thrills or tension. The last act does at least attempt to spice things up by adding more of the slasher elements into the flick, but even these scenes lack any sort of entertainment as they seem very awkward and poorly handled.
Overall 'Don't Hang Up' is bizarre and sometimes creepy, but there's just simply not enough here to keep the viewer interested as it struggles to hold any sort of momentum.