The Call 2020

As 28-year-old Kim Seo-yeon (Seo-yeon) arrives at her childhood home in rural Korea, she’s met with a sense of nostalgia and unease. The crumbling estate seems to embody the fractured relationships within its walls: between Seo-yeon and her estranged mother, who lies bedridden in the hospital; and between Seo-yeon’s own past and present, marked by the unhealed scars on her skin. In this rural retreat, she’s forced to rely on a decades-old cordless phone after losing her modern device, only to be thrust into a mysterious conversation with a distressed woman named Oh Young-sook (Young-sook).

As Seo-yeon delves deeper into the labyrinthine house, she uncovers a hidden basement containing remnants of a bygone era. The discovery sets off a chain reaction, as she and Young-sook begin to share their life stories across the decades-spanning phone connection. Young-sook’s narrative is marked by abandonment and mistreatment at the hands of her adoptive mother, while Seo-yeon’s is defined by loss and blame towards her own mother.

The two women’s conversations become a lifeline for each other, as they exchange secrets and support. However, their newfound connection also awakens a deep sense of empathy within Seo-yeon, allowing her to relive the past through Young-sook’s eyes. This shared understanding sparks an extraordinary chain reaction: Young-sook, armed with knowledge from Seo-yeon, takes bold action in 1999 to alter the course of events that led to Seo-yeon’s father being killed in a fire.

As Seo-yeon’s reality suddenly shifts, she finds herself living in a world where her parents are alive and well, their home transformed into a lavish oasis, and her scars erased. Meanwhile, Young-sook’s life takes a darker turn as she becomes embroiled in a desperate struggle for survival. With the weight of her past bearing down on her, Young-sook must find the strength to break free from the shackles of fate and forge a new path.

Seo-yeon, now armed with the power of hindsight, sets out to uncover the secrets that will set things right. Her quest leads her online, where she uncovers the shocking truth about Young-sook’s ultimate demise at the hands of her mother during an exorcism. With this knowledge, Seo-yeon prepares to warn Young-sook about her impending doom, setting in motion a daring rescue mission that will forever alter their destinies.

As Seo-yeon (character) savored a warm evening with her parents and Sung-ho (character), the affable strawberry farmer, in 2019, an eerie parallel unfolded in the past. In 1999, Young-sook, having recently gained freedom, succumbed to her malevolent nature, forging a deadly bond with the unsuspecting Sung-ho. The younger Sung-ho had often delivered strawberries to Young-sook’s doorstep, unaware of the horrors that lurked beneath her seemingly ordinary life. When he stumbled upon the gruesome remains of the shaman inside her refrigerator, his innocence was brutally shattered, and he became her next victim.

In 2019, Seo-yeon’s reality began to unravel once more as Sung-ho vanished into thin air, leaving behind only whispers of a forgotten past. Her parents were baffled by the sudden disappearance, while the strawberry farm that had once been their haven now existed only in memory. As Seo-yeon delved deeper into the mystery, she uncovered the chilling truth about Young-sook’s dark deeds and her eventual imprisonment.

As the phone lines crackled to life, Seo-yeon confronted Young-sook with the weight of her crimes, inadvertently revealing the shocking revelation that would forever alter their twisted dynamic. Young-sook demanded to know how the authorities had pieced together the puzzle of her nefarious pastimes, but Seo-yeon remained resolute in her refusal to provide the key.

In 1999, a fateful day brought Seo-yeon and her father to Young-sook’s doorstep once more. As they prepared to finalize the sale of the property, Young-sook’s sinister intentions were ignited, leading her to commit heinous acts that would have far-reaching consequences. The sound of screams echoed through the years as Seo-yeon’s reality continued to disintegrate.

As the fabric of time became increasingly distorted, Seo-yeon found herself facing an impossible choice: surrender to Young-sook’s malevolent demands or risk everything in a desperate bid to thwart her arch-nemesis. With each passing moment, the stakes grew higher as the line between past and present blurred, threatening to engulf them both in its destructive wake.

As desperation sets in, Seo-yeon takes drastic measures by breaking into the local police station to uncover any remaining clues about Young-sook’s case. Her search yields an old notebook belonging to the officer who handled the investigation back in 1999. The notebook holds a wealth of information, and Seo-yeon uses it to taunt Young-sook during their next phone conversation. However, this new development only serves to fuel Young-sook’s anger, as she reveals a shocking truth: Seo-yeon herself was once responsible for the fire that claimed her father’s life. The revelation is all the more devastating when it’s revealed that Seo-yeon had been complicit in her mother’s supposed negligence, blaming Eun-ae for the tragedy.

Seo-yeon uses the police notes to provide Young-sook with the junk collector’s real address, and the latter seizes the opportunity to eliminate him in 1999. The knife used in the murder is then destroyed, leaving no physical evidence linking Seo-yeon to the crime. With her alibi intact, she continues her killing spree, unchecked.

As Seo-yeon’s reality shifts once more, she finds herself facing an even more dire situation. Her house is now a dilapidated nightmare, filled with refrigerators containing the gruesome remnants of her many victims. The discovery is made all the more chilling when it’s revealed that Young-sook still owns the property and has taken up residence in the very same house.

Seo-yeon’s investigation into the notebook reveals a new layer of complexity: it now contains notes from the policeman who visited the house with Eun-ae, searching for Seo-yeon and her father. The revelation sends shockwaves through Seo-yeon’s consciousness as she realizes the true extent of Young-sook’s manipulation.

With this newfound understanding, Seo-yeon makes a desperate attempt to warn her mother, calling around the approximate time Eun-ae made a similar call in 1999. The phone call serves as a lifeline, allowing Seo-yeon to encourage her mother to fight back against Young-sook’s latest attack.

In a stunning turn of events, the older Young-sook appears, chasing down old Seo-yeon through the house with a malevolent intensity. Eun-ae refuses to go down without a fight, using every ounce of strength she possesses to fend off her tormentor. In the end, it’s Eun-ae who emerges victorious, having pushed Young-sook over the first-floor railing and sending them both tumbling to the floor below.

As the dust settles, Seo-yeon finds herself in a new reality, one where the house is left in ruins and old Young-sook has vanished. However, this time around, she’s reunited with her mother, who had miraculously survived the ordeal despite her injuries. Together, they visit Seo-yeon’s father’s grave before departing into a brighter future.

As the credits roll on, a tantalizing glimpse into the past is revealed, taking us back to 2019 and a pivotal moment in Young-sook’s life. In a bold move, she uses the phone to reach out to her younger self, circa 1999, mere moments before her fateful confrontation with Seo-yeon. This timely intervention allows 1999 Young-sook to narrowly avoid catastrophe as Eun-ae and the police officer arrive on the scene. The consequences of this altered timeline are swift and far-reaching: when Seo-yeon and Eun-ae depart the cemetery, it becomes clear that Eun-ae’s presence in reality has been erased from existence. As the scene fades to black, we’re left with a sense of unease as the camera cuts away to reveal a chilling tableau - a person shrouded in white cloth, bound to a chair and shrieking for help. The cloth is finally torn away, revealing an adult Seo-yeon, her eyes wide with terror as she realizes that her worst nightmares are about to become a grim reality at the hands of the ruthless Young-sook.