When a Stranger Calls

FADE IN:

EXT. SUBURBAN STREET - NIGHT

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.

INT. HOUSE - FRONT HALL

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:

INT. DINING ROOM - LATER

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:

Did he say anything about me?

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.

JILL:

Okay, Nancy. Bye. And thank you.

NANCY (O.S.)

Yeah. Bye.

Jill makes a face at the phone and hangs up. She tries to go

back to her homework, but she cannot.

CUT TO:

INT. LIVING ROOM - LATER

Jill is working now, diligently. The phone rings. She picks

it up.

JILL:

Hello?

There is a brief pause; then the line goes dead and a dial

tone cuts in. Jill hangs up and goes back to work.

Pause.

The phone rings again. Jill picks it up.

JILL:

Billy?...

A VOICE speaks on the other end of the phone.

DUNCAN (O.S.)

Have you checked the children?

JILL:

What?

The line goes dead. Dial tone. Jill hangs up and goes right

back to work.

CUT TO:

INT. LIVING ROOM - LATER

Jill sits at the table as before, doing her homework, smoking

a cigarette. The phone rings. Jill picks it up.

JILL:

Hello?

DUNCAN (O.S.)

Have you checked the children?

JILL:

Mrs. Mandrakis?

The line goes dead. Dial tone. Jill hangs up and looks off

into space, thinking.

O.S. we hear a faint rattling noise from somewhere in the

house. Jill hears it too. She stubs out her cigarette, gets

up from the table and walks out of the living room.

INT. HALLWAY

Jill enters the hallway and pauses. Then she starts walking

slowly down the hall to the kitchen door.

Again the rattling noise O.S., only louder this time. Jill

stops dead, listens, then continues forward even more

cautiously.

INT. KITCHEN

As Jill enters. She cannot find the lightswitch, so she stands

in the darkness listening. Again the rattle, very close now.

Jill turns her head sharply, then walks to the refrigerator

and opens it. It is only the automatic icemaker creating the

rattle.

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