There is not really a twist in this film, but there is one 'reveal' which then throws the rest of the film up in the air – I will spoil that here, just in case anyone is here without having seen the film (seems very unlikely).
Let's start with the film but leaving the last 30 seconds off for the minute. The film is set in the office of a suicide helpline, and a man is on his first day on the phones when he takes a call from a teenage girl. The camera doesn't leave the office, so for most of the film all we see is a guy on the phone. This is still quite engaging because the writing is mostly natural, the delivery is really good, and the film does have a tension to it – the feeling of a life being on the line (forgive the pun) is tangible, and it makes for a good drama. There is a little bit of corniness in the closure of the call, but one can forgive it that, and mostly it made for an engaging scene.
The final line of the film reveals that the man helping the girl was Ted Bundy. This is based on a true story, because Bundy did work at such a call-center for a while. This reveal made the film go from a solidly engaging scene, to be a film that then stuck in my mind for much longer than it would have done (as good as it was, it wasn't one I would have remembered for long). The reveal works well because the film up to that point had been successful in drawing us into the characters, getting us engaged in their lives within this scene, and feeling like we know them in the roles they are in. Learning that one is also a mass murderer throws all of that up in the air – of course that context matters, but it puts the viewer into complex places whereas before it had all been nicely black/white morally.
I can understand if some feel it is a cheap reveal, but it worked well for me. The only problem it gave me was that it reminded me of the old Yellow Pages advert ("my name? JR Hartley") which reduced the dramatic impact a little in that moment – but that it stayed with me kicking around in my mind is testament to it working well.
Let's start with the film but leaving the last 30 seconds off for the minute. The film is set in the office of a suicide helpline, and a man is on his first day on the phones when he takes a call from a teenage girl. The camera doesn't leave the office, so for most of the film all we see is a guy on the phone. This is still quite engaging because the writing is mostly natural, the delivery is really good, and the film does have a tension to it – the feeling of a life being on the line (forgive the pun) is tangible, and it makes for a good drama. There is a little bit of corniness in the closure of the call, but one can forgive it that, and mostly it made for an engaging scene.
The final line of the film reveals that the man helping the girl was Ted Bundy. This is based on a true story, because Bundy did work at such a call-center for a while. This reveal made the film go from a solidly engaging scene, to be a film that then stuck in my mind for much longer than it would have done (as good as it was, it wasn't one I would have remembered for long). The reveal works well because the film up to that point had been successful in drawing us into the characters, getting us engaged in their lives within this scene, and feeling like we know them in the roles they are in. Learning that one is also a mass murderer throws all of that up in the air – of course that context matters, but it puts the viewer into complex places whereas before it had all been nicely black/white morally.
I can understand if some feel it is a cheap reveal, but it worked well for me. The only problem it gave me was that it reminded me of the old Yellow Pages advert ("my name? JR Hartley") which reduced the dramatic impact a little in that moment – but that it stayed with me kicking around in my mind is testament to it working well.
