The thing is, given the premise, it's a pure crapshoot as to who the antagonist may be; the narrative gives us a likely suspect at the start, but it's just as possible the culprit could be someone the character is friendly with. There's a dire realism on hand about violence against women - and the declination of men or authority figures to do anything about it - that makes the plot more open-ended than perhaps the screenwriters even intended. To that point, one could argue that the casting of major star Lynda Carter (Wonder Woman!) in the lead role is also a meta touch, reflecting the sad truth that no one is immune to that peril. Put these aside and 'Hotline' may come across as a fairly standard thriller, TV movie or otherwise, but that doesn't mean it can't still be enjoyable. In fact, I think this is fairly solid, and it holds up well even 40 years on.
True, this isn't the first such story to involve escalating cryptic messages, and excepting the cast, there maybe isn't something to stand out so much about this rendition as to make it a must-see. But it stands tall nonetheless, well-written and very capably made. Johnny Harris' original music, driven by synthesizers, lends definite atmosphere, and to some degree reminds of Italian maestros Goblin who contributed to Dario Argento's gory giallo. This dovetails neatly with the haunting air of mystery, which manages to be grisly without actually showing a great deal of violence. The building urgency throughout the length only expands outward as it becomes more apparent the perpetrator could be anyone at all - right up until the last half hour so, and the pieces start to come together. I really quite like Stancil E. D. Johnson and David E. Peckinpah's screenplay; it feels smart and focused. The characters are broad enough as to denote universality, but open enough as they are penned to give the cast some leeway in embodying them. And the scene writing and narrative are rife with plentiful tension and suspense to keep us locked in and see - well, maybe not how it will end, because that's easy enough to guess, but who really is the killer.
Jerry Jameson shows fine mindfulness as director to secure as much ambience as possible, with carefully considered shots and some very specific use of lighting. Crew behind the scenes offer excellent contributions to flavor the tableau, including hair and makeup work. And the cast is very good. Carter is the chief attraction, of course, and she illustrates sharp range and poise as a leading lady; there's no questioning why she can claim such household name recognition. Her co-stars are no slouches, however, with those in supporting parts bringing their characters to life with able personality to complete the picture.
If slightly predictable and not perfectly gripping, 'Hotline' was crafted with no small amount of attentiveness to make the story as taut and harrowing as it could be. One rather has expectations of made-for-TV movies being a step or two down from major studio productions, yet I think sufficient hard work went into this that it measures up reasonably well to its more visible brethren. A content warning of sorts is perhaps necessary on account of the realist thematic content, and I can understand how this won't appeal to all viewers just out of personal preference. Still - recommendable especially for fans of Lynda Carter - 'Hotline' is all the same a worthy TV thriller that deserves one's time if you have the chance to watch.
True, this isn't the first such story to involve escalating cryptic messages, and excepting the cast, there maybe isn't something to stand out so much about this rendition as to make it a must-see. But it stands tall nonetheless, well-written and very capably made. Johnny Harris' original music, driven by synthesizers, lends definite atmosphere, and to some degree reminds of Italian maestros Goblin who contributed to Dario Argento's gory giallo. This dovetails neatly with the haunting air of mystery, which manages to be grisly without actually showing a great deal of violence. The building urgency throughout the length only expands outward as it becomes more apparent the perpetrator could be anyone at all - right up until the last half hour so, and the pieces start to come together. I really quite like Stancil E. D. Johnson and David E. Peckinpah's screenplay; it feels smart and focused. The characters are broad enough as to denote universality, but open enough as they are penned to give the cast some leeway in embodying them. And the scene writing and narrative are rife with plentiful tension and suspense to keep us locked in and see - well, maybe not how it will end, because that's easy enough to guess, but who really is the killer.
Jerry Jameson shows fine mindfulness as director to secure as much ambience as possible, with carefully considered shots and some very specific use of lighting. Crew behind the scenes offer excellent contributions to flavor the tableau, including hair and makeup work. And the cast is very good. Carter is the chief attraction, of course, and she illustrates sharp range and poise as a leading lady; there's no questioning why she can claim such household name recognition. Her co-stars are no slouches, however, with those in supporting parts bringing their characters to life with able personality to complete the picture.
If slightly predictable and not perfectly gripping, 'Hotline' was crafted with no small amount of attentiveness to make the story as taut and harrowing as it could be. One rather has expectations of made-for-TV movies being a step or two down from major studio productions, yet I think sufficient hard work went into this that it measures up reasonably well to its more visible brethren. A content warning of sorts is perhaps necessary on account of the realist thematic content, and I can understand how this won't appeal to all viewers just out of personal preference. Still - recommendable especially for fans of Lynda Carter - 'Hotline' is all the same a worthy TV thriller that deserves one's time if you have the chance to watch.