Murder By Phone (1982)

[ramboraph]

This is a film that I find surprising that it has never gotten a release on DVD (let alone onto Blu-Ray)...

It seems like any type of 80s slasher film or horror film is prime for a release from various companies...Vinegar Syndrome, Scream Factory, Arrow Video, etc...but sadly nothing for this one.

The plot is goofy but the execution is surprisingly decent. Richard Charmberlain gives a solid performance, the death scenes are over the top and the pacing/direction is above average. A bit of an underrated one that I wish would get some kind of release one day.

[DonB]

Yeah, this one is underrated and deserves a blu-ray release. Solid performances and direction. It's not some slasher trash, but a fairly serious thriller that incorporates themes of paranoia and technology run amuck into its mad-killer premise.

[Rayjg]

Just saw the trailer for this and didn't think it was real but a AI creation Seriously, why hasn't this seen a release since VHS? It looks insanely fun. I'm guessing Warner is the culprit.

[defwarrior4000]

Originally Posted by Rayjg

Just saw the trailer for this and didn't think it was real but a AI creation Seriously, why hasn't this seen a release since VHS? It looks insanely fun. I'm guessing Warner is the culprit.

Warner once released this on video as they had a deal with New World Pictures for video releases at the time. I think Shout Factory has a better chance of owning this one than Warner. It's also possible that the Producers or their estate own the film due to its Canadian origins.

There is an official red band trailer that's on the Trailer Trauma III compilation that New World Pictures put together. That's the one making the rounds on YouTube.

[CMG]

The star of 'Bells' RICHARD CHAMBERLAIN would've been 91 today.

(March 31, 1934 - March 29, 2025).

Think this was the only real horror movie he did. I mean, I know he was in "The Swarm" (1978) but it's hard to call THE SWARM a 'horror movie', innit? I reckon it was ~meant~ to be more suspenseful and scary than it turned out.

MURDER BY PHONE was the U.S. re-title.

BELLS was filmed in Canada in mid-to-late 1980.

BELLS was released on ASTRAL VIDEO in Canada in the mid-1980s. This is the original version of the movie running 95 minutes. ASTRAL issued it on tape in a clamshell case with insert artwork. (I've got one).

MURDER BY PHONE was released on WARNER HOME VIDEO in the U.S. in the mid-80s in a version running 80 minutes. WARNER issued it on tape in a clamshell case with insert artwork. (I've one of these as well).

→ I don't know offhand if WARNER re-issued "Murder By Phone" in a small box after the clamshell release?

I reckon Roger Corman of New World would've been the one who felt the movie would be better if it were ((tightened)) up, ergo, the shorter run time for the American version along with the different title. That's my best guess as to why the U.S. version was shorn of 15 minutes and re-titled.

------------------------------------

Of all the dreadful suspense•horror movies that have been issued on DVD and/or Blu-ray over the years it is surprising that BELLS or MURDER BY PHONE -- either version -- has not been issued legally on digital disc.

I guess the movie just fell through the cracks? Maybe whoever or whatever entity owns the rights to 'BELLS' at this point doesn't care about re-issuing it.

Another Thought: Is it possible the folks /or/ company who currently own the rights to BELLS don't even know it's in their holdings?

[defwarrior4000]

Originally Posted by CMG

The star of 'Bells' RICHARD CHAMBERLAIN would've been 91 today.

(March 31, 1934 - March 29, 2025).

Think this was the only real horror movie he did. I mean, I know he was in "The Swarm" (1978) but it's hard to call THE SWARM a 'horror movie', innit? I reckon it was ~meant~ to be more suspenseful and scary than it turned out.

MURDER BY PHONE was the U.S. re-title.

BELLS was filmed in Canada in mid-to-late 1980.

BELLS was released on ASTRAL VIDEO in Canada in the mid-1980s. This is the original version of the movie running 95 minutes. ASTRAL issued it on tape in a clamshell case with insert artwork. (I've got one).

MURDER BY PHONE was released on WARNER HOME VIDEO in the U.S. in the mid-80s in a version running 80 minutes. WARNER issued it on tape in a clamshell case with insert artwork. (I've one of these as well).

→ I don't know offhand if WARNER re-issued "Murder By Phone" in a small box after the clamshell release?

I reckon Roger Corman of New World would've been the one who felt the movie would be better if it were ((tightened)) up, ergo, the shorter run time for the American version along with the different title. That's my best guess as to why the U.S. version was shorn of 15 minutes and re-titled.

------------------------------------

Of all the dreadful suspense•horror movies that have been issued on DVD and/or Blu-ray over the years it is surprising that BELLS or MURDER BY PHONE -- either version -- has not been issued legally on digital disc.

I guess the movie just fell through the cracks? Maybe whoever or whatever entity owns the rights to 'BELLS' at this point doesn't care about re-issuing it.

Another Thought: Is it possible the folks /or/ company who currently own the rights to BELLS don't even know it's in their holdings?

There was a Warner slipcover reissue in the early 90's. Not sure if it's a different tape master or if it's the same one as the 1984 clamshell release.

Has anyone even contacted Shout to see if this is one of the New World titles they have the rights for? I know Night Life was one Shout tried to work on with Sony, but there are currently no usable sources to create a Blu-ray since Sony had nothing in their vaults.

[CMG]

Good to know there was a later-release slipcover as I didn't know if WARNER had re-issued it or not.

The later Warner release is probably the same shorter U.S. version of the movie if I were to give odds.

I bought a used Warner clamshell of MURDER BY PHONE probably 7 years before I discovered the original title was BELLS and ran longer.

In late 1997/early 1998 I bought a spate of videos from a closing video store called TITAN VIDEO II in West Palm Beach, FL. (I think Titan Video I was in Palm Beach Gardens). Anyway, one of the movies I picked up from TVII was "Murder By Phone" in the clamshell. The tape was covered in stickers, which I mostly cleaned off because they were everywhere. Think I left one sticker on the videocassette because it was too much of a pain in the neck to get off.

Fast forward to 2005 when I discovered ASTRAL VIDEO from Canada had issued BELLS on tape at 95 minutes so I thought to look for it. I found one on eBay. 1980s-issue Astrals weren't so rare in 2005 like they are now. So I acquired an Astral and covered both bases. Now I had the shorter version and the longer version and I was set.

[defwarrior4000]

Originally Posted by CMG

Good to know there was a later-release slipcover as I didn't know if WARNER had re-issued it or not.

The later Warner release is probably the same shorter U.S. version of the movie if I were to give odds.

I bought a used Warner clamshell of MURDER BY PHONE probably 7 years before I discovered the original title was BELLS and ran longer.

In late 1997/early 1998 I bought a spate of videos from a closing video store called TITAN VIDEO II in West Palm Beach, FL. (I think Titan Video I was in Palm Beach Gardens). Anyway, one of the movies I picked up from TVII was "Murder By Phone" in the clamshell. The tape was covered in stickers, which I mostly cleaned off because they were everywhere. Think I left one sticker on the videocassette because it was too much of a pain in the neck to get off.

Fast forward to 2005 when I discovered ASTRAL VIDEO from Canada had issued BELLS on tape at 95 minutes so I thought to look for it. I found one on eBay. 1980s-issue Astrals weren't so rare in 2005 like they are now. So I acquired an Astral and covered both bases. Now I had the shorter version and the longer version and I was set.

Here is the slip dated from 1993. It appears to use the shorter version as it is listed as 80 minutes.

[CMG]

The Canadian ASTRAL version release of BELLS only shows a still on the front cover of John Houseman bleeding from his face. Not the most 'artistic' piece of sleeve art. The U.S. poster art/WARNER sleeve art is considerably more eye-catching.