The EVIL Phone Service
Hot off the success of Fright Night, Stephen Geoffreys starred in the Robert Englund directed 976-EVIL about a fortune telling phone service that thrives on pain. Basically, it knows your fears and after you call in, it exudes its malevolent power over you and turns your life into a living nightmare. Why? Cause you didnt dial 976-LOVE. The most interesting aspect of this film lies in the nature of how the demonic force operates. It cant simply attack you through the phone; it must be invited into your life. Its up to you to dial the number or not. Perhaps, in this case, the haunted object serves as a warning. When you abuse technology to indulge in dark fantasies, getting carried away is easier than you think. This strong sense of morality helps carry the possessed-telephone-line angle out of the realm of totally absurd and into something more believable. On a side note, this deranged phone service eventually expanded their operation and is now a major communications conglomerate known to us mere mortals as The Bells of Hell, but they just shortened it to Bell. Its snappier.