A fine flick, and a very engrossing storyline! The cast was excellent, each of them giving superb characterizations, but one is a STAND OUT!! That is the marvelous character actress, Evelyn Varden. She gave it her all in so many of the films in which she appeared.......most notably "Pinky," "The Bad Seed," "Night of the Hunter," and most especially, "Phone Call From a Stranger." She could play it "soft" or "tough," but TOUGH suited her really well! Such a fine character actress, who added tremendously to films in which she appeared! What a pity that we could not have seen her in so many other films before she passed from the scene!

Bette Davis & Gary Merrill had done another film in between ALL ABOUT EVE and PHONE CALL FROM A STRANGER...it was a British noir called ANOTHER MAN'S POISON, which airs from time to time, and it's not bad. One thing I read is that Davis' career was floundering again after EVE, and she realized her leading lady days (in the conventional sense) were now behind her. When Merrill brought the script home for PHONE CALL, she read it and decided she could have fun (and draw good notices) playing the character role of Marie. Personally, I think it's her best performance, better than Jezebel and Margo Channing and Baby Jane.Other items: this film seems to be one of those productions that pushes the boundaries of the production code. The crash of the aircraft is quite violent. In previous films like FIVE CAME BACK or DIVE BOMBER, the crashes may be fatal but they are not as explicit and most of the deadly impact takes place off screen...but in PHONE CALL FROM A STRANGER, we're shown a very harrowing collision. I do like the fact that it does not occur immediately. We get to see Merrill bonding with the casualties for some length of screen time before they're killed off. The one thing that I don't like about this film is that every person has a somewhat overdramatic set of problems they are dealing with...it would have been a refreshing change of pace if one of them was struggling with a more mundane existence, like not living up to his or her potential, which would not be too flashy or extreme, but still realistic. Not every person we are seated next to on a plane has a ton of drama in his or her life.

An airliner crashes, and we learn through the eyes of a good Samaritan survivor about the private lives of three of the victims.No movie with that great floozie Shelley Winters is worth missing. If you haven't seen her during her attractive slender years, she's on great display here, brassy cheapness and all. The movie's really more of a human interest drama than a soap opera. It may be pretty talky, but fortunately the narrative seldom drags. Then too, those early scenes in the storm-tossed airliner are real nail-biters. But then the movie settles into what else— phone calls from a stranger. Merrill is fine as David Trask who manages to help the bereaved while learning a few things himself. For a principal player, Merrill certainly had a different non-Hollywood look, which I guess is why he was cast in the ordinary guy part. And how about that flashback through mean old lady Carr's (Varden) imagination where she's dressed like a sainted madonna. It's an unexpected bit of visual irony, thanks to someone in production.Then there's Keenan Wynn acting a lot like his clownish dad, Ed Wynn. But, as we learn, his Eddie Hoke is a clown with a heart. Also, I'm guessing headliner Davis accepted what amounts to a cameo part as a favor to her then real life husband, Merrill. Still she manages to fit right in with a non-showy performance. Of course, I can't look at the angular Rennie without thinking, "Klaatu barada, nikto". After all, this is only a year after he and his one-eyed robot froze the Earth in place in that great sci-fi classic The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951).Anyhow, ace studio director Negulesco puts it all together without letting the tragic material get too weepy. All in all, this is TCF managing a low budget b&w in fine fashion, and is worth catching up with since the material never dates.

The fate of four people from different walks in life come together as they travel to Los Angeles on the same plane. The weather plays tricks along the way, so they divert to unexpected destinations where all get a chance to know each other a little bit better. The viewer gets to know their troubled lives in flashbacks, a device mainly used to fill in the blanks in cinematic terms. After an accident ends the lives of three of these newly found friends, it is the task of the survivor to go see the families that were left behind, trying to piece together the puzzle in his mind.Directed by Jean Negulesco, this Twentieth Century Fox entry of 1952, showed on a classic movie channel recently. The film is not often seen these days. The scenario by the great Nunnally Johnson is based on a story written by I.A.R Wylie. There are good appearances by the interesting cast that was put together. The actresses have the best parts in the movie. Shelley Winters, Beatrice Straight, and Bette Davis are perfectly cast. Gary Merrill, Michael Rennie, Keenan Wynn do a fine job for Mr. Negulesco.