User reviews

The Call of Cthulhu is one of Lovecrafts superb horror short stories. The action is set in the 1920's and this film does not change any details of the plot (at least as far as I can tell).

Films based on Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos are nearly always terrible. This is because modern horror films rely on gruesome shocks and all too familiar plots. Lovecraft's tales tend to be non linear (e.g. told in dream sequences or as pages from a diary and so on), and the monsters rarely make appearances. Turning 'The Call of Cthulhu' into a film is certainly no easy prospect - especially on a low budget.

The makers of this film have made a virtue out of a necessity. The home made quality of the special effects are charming. The film is presented in black and white and with no dialogue. This all helps to maintain as professional a standard as possible in this small scale production. Captions are provided to accompany the storytelling and the film has quite a striking soundtrack.

Most horror fans will find this film tedious and the special effects jerky (and sometimes home made). I enjoyed the quirky and inexpensive approach to the special effects used in this film and felt that the production imitated the techniques that may have been used in a vintage film or in a stage production.

A must see film for all real HP Lovecraft fans. Not for fans of gore-fests, or slick, expensive horror films.

I am a bit surprised by the terrible reviews Call of Cthulhu has received. While it is not perhaps the best movie ever, or chilling and/or gory like modern horror movies are, that's not the point of the movie.

What it is, and it succeeds in, is a very faithful adaptation of the original story, following also its non-linear storytelling and describing events around the globe. The movie is also atmospheric pastiche of the 20s impressionistic silent movies. As such, it is very much worth seeing, of you are interested in how Lovecraft's stories would have been filmed when they first were written, and/or are interested in 20s impressionism in general.

This is my first review on IMDb. I was so pleasantly surprised (in such a twisted way) by this film that I felt almost obligated to comment on it.

I've always loved H. P. Lovecraft's stories and have read pretty much everything he produced. Unfortunately, his work must not translate well to film because most movies based on his stories are pretty regrettable. Many excellent and unique movies have incorporated elements and themes from his stories (The Ninth Gate, Cast a Deadly Spell, The Evil Dead movies, In The Mouth of Madness etc.), but many of those taken literally from his writings (The Dunwich Horror, Beyond The Wall of Sleep, The Curse, etc.) just don't work.

This film contains many elements that also generally don't work, at least for modern audiences. It's a silent movie filmed in black and white. The acting is consistent with old silent films or stage, with exaggerated expressions and movements and is even comical at times. It is clearly a very low budget affair with outmoded special effects. The strange thing is that all of this works very well with the story, making it perhaps the best screen adaptation of a Lovecraft story that I've seen to date.

Because of its format, TCOC takes a little patience but overall it's a lot of fun to watch and manages to build a fair amount of suspense and tension even as it amuses.

H.P. Lovecraft is often credited with launching the true horror genre we know today. Many claim him as an inspiration, including the current master of dark dreams Stephen King. Difficulties in bringing his cerebral literary content to the silver screen have been mentioned time and again, and with good reason. How can you explain a man's dream experiences that even he can't explain?

When I learned that a society dedicated to Lovecraft's work decided to take on a movie version of his most famous story, THE CALL OF CTHULHU, I cringed. How could a small group of people do justice to such a magnificent piece of horror fiction?

Well the cast and crew do it justice even if the script fails a bit. The black-and-white silent picture theme went exceptionally well with the telling of a tale so old (1920s). The sets were equally impressive, especially the pivotal dreamscapes and the retelling of the Pacific Island that belonged to Cthulhu, this terrible being from the beginning of time.

Since not many of the cast were actually established actors, it was an excellent idea to do a homage to the silent film era, too. Undoubtedly, if forced to do a modern-style film of Lovecraft's story, they would've failed miserably. But as it stands here, this film pays homage and respect to both old filming styles and a Lovecraftian feel.

It's also a blessing and a curse that the film is only 47 minutes long. The blessing is that most movie watchers of today couldn't handle a 90 - 120 minute silent film (or at least few could). The curse is that the script jumps around a lot. We move back three time-frames at one point, each time adding confusion f the viewer ("Where are we again?"). I realize that the crew wanted to remain true to Lovecraft's work, but cinema often takes liberties with the written word, and I feel this film could've benefited from a bit of that as well.

Even so, this is a fresh piece of cinematic work that entertains and surprises. The special features on the DVD are also worth watching (except when the director is talking while eating a bag of potato chips), including commentaries from the cast and crew about this monumental undertaking from such a small band of dedicated Lovecraft lovers.

Wow! This is quite good.

This is a silent movie, with dialog cards rather than sound dialog. It has a quite good, atmospheric music soundtrack.

If you're a Lovecraft fan this film is a must see. It's not long, less than an hour, after all the original material is a short story, not a novel.

The film stays close to Lovecraft's material. Special effects are minimal, but workable. After all, we're talking H.P. Lovecraft Historic Society budget, not Hollywood.

All in all, this is a worthwhile little gem.

HPLHS is at www.cthulhulives.org.

A friend passed this on to me with a laconic "let me know what you think". I wasn't expecting much. I was pleasantly surprised. The silent b/w thing was great and just the right atmosphere for a Lovecraft film. I especially liked the real period feel of the title cards. The acting was surprisingly good, particularly the professor and the degenerate swamp dweller. Silent film acting is much more like stage acting, i.e. it has to be somewhat exaggerated or the audience will lose it. This film understood this and bravo. The production was far better than might be expected on something I suspect to have been low budget and the expressionist set of R'lyeh was fantastic! That said I have a few plaints. Firstly; costumes. Unfortunately they fall into an all too common trap of period film making. Don't assume you know, get someone who really does know, look at old photos or paintings very carefully. In the 1920s men wore suits and ties and hats but that doesn't mean if you put a man in a suit and a tie and a hat he will look like he stepped out of the 20s. The suits here were mostly the wrong cut and style. Henry Wilcox was wearing a pair of ridiculous knickers that looked cheap and ill made, in the 20s they would have been far baggier. The shape of the ties was very modern.In one flashback scene to 1908 they lost it all together with an array of modern jackets and a pathetic attempt at period look by everyone wearing the same wing collar...SOFT ATTACHED WING COLLARS!!!! How 1980s! a variety of stiff detached collars, please! I know I seem a pedant but what is the point in establishing a great period atmosphere if you can't get the clothes right? Some scenes fell very flat and this seemed to be down to underacting and bad direction e.g the archaeologists conference. The music was buzzing and highly annoying. There were definitely moments of drag and tedium and the pace could have been picked up or cuts made, frankly it was too long.

Despite this for what it was it was a valiant and amusing attempt to render a great story in an appropriate context. If you complain about the shoddiness of sets or the crap special effects then you are missing the point. THEY ARE MEANT TO BE! It wouldn't be as good otherwise but I accept some people just won't get the joke. This kind of thing is not for everyone but I'm glad they did it. Being involved to some degree in projects of a similar level I know that it's easy with modern technology to make crap look good. I think it's great that they did the opposite...If you love old movies and Gothic drama have a look at this, it's fun.

This is the best adaptation of any H.P. Lovecraft movie ever made, either by fans or big studio. It's a silent movie, done in a style that makes it look almost as if truly made long years ago.

The script comes directly from the Call of Cthulhu story, with virtually no alterations whatsoever.

It has been done to look as an old movie (from the times when Lovecraft was alive), so the F/X department are appropriately rudimentary or done in modern media to replicate the original ones.

Direct influences to the style are Metropolis, Faust, and Nosferatu; 3 great silent movies.

Is 'The Call of Cthulhu (2005)' the finest adaptation of a H.P. Lovecraft story to date? It's an interesting question, but unfortunately not one that I can answer, since he's an author whose name I'd never heard until I watched this film. From what I've been able to gather, Lovecraft (1890-1937) – a fellow with a particularly formidable glare, judging from his photograph – was an American author of horror, fantasy and science-fiction, collectively known as "weird fiction." His short story "The Call of Cthulhu" was first published in 1928, and was long deemed unfilmable, until first-time director Andrew Leman took up the challenge. In a moment of inspired genius, it was decided to film the story as though, indeed, it had been produced in the 1920s, as a black-and-white silent film, with more than just a hint of German Expressionism. This artistic decision successfully obscures the production's presumably-restricted budget, and, not only does it look great, but any apparent faults actually work in the film's favour, harking back to an era when imagination preceded realism.

Though Lovecraft's story doesn't really go anywhere, and is so terribly convoluted that once we're even treated to a flashback within a flashback within a flashback within a flashback, it is also consistently engaging, steadily uncoiling a thread of mystery and intrigue. When a man (Matt Foyer) uncovers the ill-fated research of his late uncle, he comes to learn of a dangerous and enigmatic cult, which worships a monstrous alien deity named Cthulhu. Through dreams, journals and historical documents, the man uncovers a baffling string of inexplicable coincidences, and uncovers the truth behind the disappearance of a ship's crew on an uncharted Pacific island. The narrative structure – perhaps modelled on the flashback framing device of 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)' – works better than it probably should, accumulating an assortment of seemingly-unrelated tales into a puzzle that slowly forms before our eyes, then ending with just as much uncertainty and ambiguity as we had to begin with. We get the sense that there's a lot more to this mystery than we've been told.

The films works most successfully as an affectionate and endearing homage to the Gothic horrors of the 1920s, most noticeably Robert Wiene's 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' and F.W. Murnau's 'Faust (1926).' All the stylistic elements – the emphatic overacting, the stodgy special effects, the distorted cardboard sets – contribute effectively towards evoking the desired atmosphere. The musical score adds a dramatic touch to the proceedings, and, against all logic, I actually found the ominous charge of Cthulhu to be quite a creepy spectacle. 'The Call of Cthulhu,' like all films, appears to have its fair share of dissenters, but I imagine the bulk of them to have had very little experience in silent cinema. If this is the case, it's understandable than many might have difficulty in understanding both the film's thematic and stylistic references. At only 47-minutes in length, Andrew Leman's entertaining Gothic thriller is very much worthwhile, and probably my favourite completely silent film since… well, let's just say it starred Charles Chaplin.

Much like I imagine the filmmakers here to be, I am a fan of Lovecraft. Not a crazy, super-protective, strict by-the-book fan, but a fan none the less. I certainly have heard the call of the mighty Cthulhu. So I understand why one would want to make this film, I really do. Lovecraft's stories are so imaginative that they seem to cry out to be seen, literally, on screen.

The problem is that I don't think they can truly work in film.

See so much of what makes the stories work is the idea of things that cannot exist. The terror comes from imagining how paralyzingly horrifying these experiences would be if they happened to you personally. So by that token watching a filmmaker's version of the images will always fall short of what yr own mind makes happen when reading the story.

Additionally the actual prose is a huge part of what makes the stories good and obviously that is (due to the nature of the film medium) lost when watched on a screen. A character sitting in a room reading can be horrifying in a Lovecraft story, but it will not be that scary in a movie when you have to watch an actor sitting in a room looking distraught.

And on top of all of this the silent movie treatment turns the whole thing into a hokey exercise in nostalgia. No silent movie is as scary as a Lovecraft story can be. So why turn one of his best into a low-budget throw-back experiment? These guys obviously put a lot of time and work into this movie and I will not bash them for trying. If you like Lovecraft then maybe you should watch this, for fun. But if you are new to Lovecraft then don't let this be yr introduction.

I respect the effort but it doesn't result in a satisfying film.

This isn't the first movie to be made recently despite the fact that it utilises classic silent movie methods. Dracula: Pages From a Virgin's Diary is the only other one I've seen, but I'm sure there's more besides. This adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's classic story, The Call of Cthulhu is more faithful to the original works of the great writer than the likes of films such as Re-Animator and From Beyond; but cinematically, it just doesn't work as well. Don't get me wrong, I love many classic silent movies; but Lovecraft's work is too inventive to really be given a good adaptation in this style. The film follows the story of a man searching for a diabolical cult that worships the god 'Cthulhu'. The majority of the film, therefore, follows a man reading up on the cult, and it isn't until the end, when the god finally turns up, that the film really becomes exciting. I respect The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society immensely for having the drive to put this film together, as any kind of innovation in the modern horror genre is to be welcomed with open arms, but it's clear that the filmmakers didn't have enough budget, and the silent movie gimmick isn't enough to keep the entire film interesting - even if it is only 47 minutes long. This story would be better served with a modern adaptation, and I'm pleased to say that it's getting one in 2006. On the whole, this silent version is worth watching due to the fact that it's tried to do something different and adapt the master's work 'faithfully' - but it's not a great film.

Hollywood moguls pay attention, take a look at this film and see what you can do with on a shoestring budget and a heap of imagination. It is easier of course to create a film as remarkably stylish as this when you have superior source materials in the form of H.P.Lovecraft's original texts, the essence of which are 'beyond comprehension' architecture which can send you mad, indescribable monsters which are aeon's old. all this wrapped up in a truly captivating style of film making which Mr Lovecraft surely would have endorsed. if you liked this film, which is by far the best representation to have hit the screen based on his works, then grab a book, take the phone of the hook and prepare to have your wits extracted anally.

The story is classic Lovecraft, a man recounts how his discovery of secret knowledge has driven him over the edge and brought him close to death. Its the framework that Lovecraft used again and again to tell his stories of horror. Here the story is that of the cult of Cthulhu which he discovers upon the death of his Great Uncle, a man who was himself driven to the edge of madness and to death by the secrets he uncovered. Essentially a series of flashbacks and narratives this film builds a great deal of unease as bits of story and coincidence create an a narrative that has unpleasant implications. Its not the kind of think that will make you jump out of your seat, but it will make you want to turn the light back on.

Shot now (2005) but in the style of a 1926 silent film this movie manages to make what could be very silly seem very real and menacing. There is something about the black and white imagery that makes it all seem very possible. Many people have said the story was un-filmable because of its structure of multiple tales and because if not handled correctly the hysteria felt by some characters would just be silly, this film however has proved it can be done and in a very satisfying manner.

The film's flaws are mostly technical and except in one case minor. The film, which appears to have been shot on digital video for the most part looks good, though in sequence where fire is seen the film takes on an odd appearance. The films budget also has a some stark sets that seem more like a set than place. Still they are minor complaints. The one major complaint is Cthulhu himself, which is clearly a stop motion model. While its understandable that because of the nature of the beast this was probably the way to go (and probably close to how he might have looked in 1926 had he been put on screen back then), it still removes some degree of the horror that had been created prior to this point. Ultimately its a minor quibble because whats goes before and after makes up for it.

If you like classic horror and the writing of HP Lovecraft see this movie.(just remember its suppose to have been made in 1926, not now). 8 out of 10, one of the best Lovecraft films to get Lovecraft right.

We watched 'The Call of Cthulhu' late last night. It's a 2005 film made to look like a 1920s b/w silent movie. There is no sound just the dialog screens like in old movies. I do think it would have benefited from an organ accompaniment as was often used in that day. Instead it was totally silent. The actors and scenes were also done to look like a film from that era. This story is from one of HP Lovecraft's most famous. I was never a fan of his and I'm still not. All his stories I've seen made into films are basically the same, creatures from another dimension or time, whatever, are trying to enter our world and take over. Often some nuts are trying to help them. This one was different because the film was made to look like it's from 1928 the same time Lovecraft wrote the story. It only lasted 47 minutes and that was wise. The novelty of watching a 2005 film made to look like a 1920 silent was wearing off by the time it ended. For me it was worth seeing since I love old films even if I'm not a Lovecraft fan. The makers should be respected for what they tried to do here. It often really did look like an old silent film. The monster effects near the end seem right on the money for the time. Sometimes the set designs looked like something right out of 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'. See this if you appreciate silent films.

The Call of Cthulhu is adaptation of the H.P. Lovecraft short story of the same name, and probably the most faithful adaptation of Lovecraft overall. Story is placed in 20's and this 47 minutes film completely imitate movies from that era. It's made as black and white silent movie, with noise, low resolution, film damage, over-acting men with lipstick and eye make-up, and everything that goes with it. Fans of Cthulhu mythos will be glad to finally see adaptation worthy of this horror legend, but to others I must advise to skip it.

6/10

Making a story by H.P. Lovecraft into a silent film in 2005 may not have been the most obvious move, but it turned out to be a major artistic success. I was a little skeptic myself about this weird approach, but I have to say that Andrew Leman's "The Call Of Cthulhu" is the best Lovecraft adaptation I've seen so far.

The beautiful, dark pictures and the old-fashioned score along with the over the top acting and the make-up of clown-proportions - the whole ancient feel of a silent movie - create a haunting atmosphere. Not only does the viewer feel as if he himself was in the dark about the spooky ongoings, he seems to be taken back to an early age long before mankind could rely on science.

If you're familiar with Lovecraft's novella, you might think that it's impossible to make this rather complicated and possibly special effects demanding story into a silent movie with only 45 minutes running time. Leman somehow pulls it off, though, and proves that less is more. His characters only "say" the most important things we need to know to follow the storyline. A lot of it is explained by facial expressions, newspaper clippings or diary entries. Special effects wise, Leman stays true to the silent film genre without making Cthulhu look ridiculous. The monster is only hinted at in shadows and quick cuts. This may sound weird again, but you have to watch the movie to see how it works.

"The Call Of Cthulhu" remains faithful to both, the original Lovecraft story and the silent movie genre (one little complaint I have would be that the camera-work on the first boat scene looks a little too improved for a silent movie, but that's really being nitpicky). As old-fashioned and reduced as this movie might be, it's still spooky as hell and more effective than most modern popcorn horror flicks.

Despite this being a low budget movie, it is straight to the point. It is a really good shot at bringing Lovecraft's work to the screen.

As a fan of H.P. Lovecraft's written works, I just could not let this one pass me by, and I am glad that I didn't. This movie is thrilling and entertaining from start till end.

The feel you get from the images and the way it was put together really have that Lovecraftian feel to it. I am sure that had Lovecraft seen this himself he would approve of it. Sure all who read his work have their own mental images of his universe, his creatures and creations, but the people behind this movie made a real good attempt at bringing that universe to life.

This movie also goes to prove that in order to make a good movie, you don't need to have a triple digit million dollar budget or have a vast number of celebrities on the poster to lure in an audience. This movie is well put together, and have the brooding dread and suspense that you get in Lovecraft's written work.

I think many of the "regular" movie viewers will discredit this movie, maybe because it is black/white, or because it is a silent movie, but I think most Lovecraft fans will find it to be good. Of course it would be interesting to see the "Call of Cthulhu" story as interpreted through a million dollar production, but this version will always also have appeal.

This movie is a little gem. The love, care and respect that went into its making, both for the story itself, and for the genre of silent film, makes "Call of the Cthulu" a triumph of honest artistic effort. The decision to make this a silent movie was a stroke of genius. The black and white silent format so well matches the dark and antique ambiance of H.P. Lovecraft stories. As far as I know, it is only available by order from the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society. We gathered a group of life long Lovecraft fans for the viewing, and we were all delighted by the film, and felt the movie did the story complete justice. There are some very nice extras on the DVD which explain the process of making the film, how a backyard was used to build sets, and what went into making a modern silent film hold true to the look and feel of the genre. Do yourself a favor, buy the movie, and watch it with friends. Priceless!

The style here is honestly the aspect that drew me in the most for this adaptation of the seminal literary classic "The Call of the Cthulhu". The black and white, while giving the film a clean look (almost unrealistic at points), does what it was meant to do in conveying THAT necessary tone for a story of this type. A nice added touch is that it is fully silent and for most in today's day and age, that would be enough to turn some off of it - at only 47 minutes though the director did a great job at keeping the viewers attention despite no audible dialogue.

Visual effects were not terrible and some of the set designs were very nouveau being reminiscent of the German expressionism found in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari by Robert Weine. Which I was enamored with as it both visually arresting and incomprehensible at the same time - lending itself to being unabashedly Cyclopian. A style of which is pure Lovercraft. Some of the cinematography was nausea-inducing at points though and the script cards in a handful of instances could have been on screen a few seconds longer. Those are just small, nitpicky things though that can come with more time doing of film of this type.

All in all, Call of Cthulhu does a decent job of bringing the story to life and is woth the 47 minutes of your time if you at all have an unquenchable thirst for Lovecraft adaptations.