Two sisters are in for a night to remember in this debut film from Anubys Lopez.

Sandra and Ana Pedregales are on the road to Colorado. This is the first time in three years the sisters have been together as Ana left and became successful, leaving Sandra to care for their father. Their father went missing and is presumed dead. The sisters are attempting to learn more about the circumstances revolving around their father but there comes to some dissention among them. However, that becomes the least of their problems.

As they are driving through a small town in Texas, the sisters are slowly running out of gas. They soon break down and head through the woods in hopes to find help. Soon, they discover some clues that could lead to the thing they are looking for. What exactly happened to their father? They learn that there may be a cult involved and they may end up the next victims if they don’t find a way out.

This debut film from Cuban-born filmmaker Anubys Lopez had the potential. It starts out very strong with a young woman, Lauren, falling prey to a pagan cult and then it comes to our main story, involving sisters Sandra and Ana. Played respectively by Yetlanezi Rodriguez and Angie Sandoval, they start out doing very well. However, it soon delves into the two constantly bickering at each other. Even a flashback in which they talk about what to do with their father’s house, it leads to a big blow-out in which Ana, being the older sister, ordered Sandra what was what to do.

A good ninety percent of the movie mostly revolves around the sisters bickering as to what to do and what the next steps are when they break down. There are slow burns in films, but this one takes the cake. It gets a level of boredom where it almost becomes intolerable to continue watching. Thankfully, the final ten minutes make up for the excruciating film. It felt more like a drama with a few horror beats mixed in than a full horror film. However, those final ten minutes were a major save for the film from being total oblivious.

Those Who Call seems like a film that redefines the “slow burn”, because the constant bickering of the leads ends up hindering the potential of what could have been a hell of a film. The opening and final ten minutes are the best (and only watchable) portions of the film. Hoping Lopez continues and improves on the storytelling portion of filmmaking.

WFG RATING: D

Uncork’d Entertainment presents a Harrow House Films production. Director: Anubys Lopez. Producer: Cinthia Bravo. Writer: Anubys Lopez. Cinematography: Alex Mirabal. Editing: Anubys Lopez.

Cast: Yetlanesi Rodriguez, Angie Sandoval, Reese Fast, Kevin Kinkade, Addison Cousins, Dave McClain.