Calls
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Screen for YOUR familyParent's Guide to Calls
Calls is an innovative mystery thriller miniseries that premiered on Apple TV+ in March 2021. Created by Fede Álvarez, the show is an English-language adaptation of a French series. Its unique format presents nine interconnected stories primarily through audio, simulating phone conversations and radio communiqués, accompanied by minimal abstract visualizers and subtitles. The series delves into a mysterious narrative where characters experience bizarre and terrifying phenomena, leading to an impending apocalyptic event. The storytelling relies heavily on sound design, voice acting, and the viewer's imagination to build suspense and horror. It features a notable voice cast including Lily Collins, Nick Jonas, Rosario Dawson, and Pedro Pascal. The content, while visually minimalistic, explores mature themes and intense situations, positioning it for an adult audience interested in psychological horror and speculative fiction.
Things to Consider
Violence
The series depicts intense violence through graphic audio descriptions and implied events rather than explicit visuals, which can be highly disturbing as it leverages the viewer's imagination. This includes detailed accounts of physical deterioration and death during an apocalyptic event.
The series includes 'cruel and unusual death' described through audio, with characters detailing 'bones breaking, faces melting, arms stretching' as they are 'corrected' by the universe. In the first episode, 'The End,' a horrified Sara calls 911, describing an inhuman intruder with incredibly long arms, and is later found mutilated, with her and Tim's final words indicating they are 'swallowed presumably'. Reviews highlight that while blood isn't seen, 'the terrors that lurk out in these darkened streets are conscientiously described by our unseen callers'.
Profanity
The series features frequent and strong profanity, including multiple uses of the 'f-word' and 's-word,' as well as misuses of religious terms, making it a high concern for parents.
Scary & Intense Content
The series is designed to be intensely frightening and psychologically disturbing, relying heavily on auditory cues and the viewer's imagination to create a palpable sense of dread, fear, and impending doom, escalating to apocalyptic scenarios.
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Additional Context
Best For Ages
18+ due to pervasive strong language, intensely disturbing themes, implied graphic violence, and mature thematic elements that rely on psychological terror rather than visual depiction, making it potentially more unsettling for younger viewers.
Good to Know
The unique audio-only format of 'Calls' means that while explicit visual content (like gore or nudity) is absent, the show masterfully uses sound and detailed verbal descriptions to create intense and disturbing imagery within the viewer's imagination, which can be even more impactful than visual portrayals. Parents should be aware that the lack of visuals does not diminish the maturity or intensity of the content.
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