Monster Movie of the Week: Call of Cthulhu (2005)

CALL OF CTHULHU (2005)
Directed by Andrew Leman
Genre: Silent/Horror

THE MOVIE:

While many movies are Lovecraftian in tone and content there are very few serious H. P. Lovecraft adaptations out there. It seems that most filmmakers would prefer to freely borrow elements from his fiction instead of adapting his stories whole. Along with Edgar Allen Poe, Lovecraft is remembered for his stylistic and thematic contributions more than for any one memorable story. Because of this you have Lovecraftian elements in everything from Alien to Howard the Duck and Hellboy.

Will you accept the charges?

The acclaimed 2005 short film Call of Cthulhu is an audacious 47 minute adaptation of the story of the same name lovingly produced by the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society. It is audacious because it attempts to produce the film in a style that is contemporary to the story’s 1926 publication date. Call of Cthulu is a presented as a silent movie. It is shot in black and white, complete with title placards, pancake make-up and Twenties-style acting. In addition to being fun to watch and stylistically cool, all of these conceits help to nicely mask the fact that the movie was shot with a minimal budget.


Call of Cthulhu is the story of a man’s investigation into the mysterious worldwide Cthulhu cult and its connection to his uncle’s death. The movie frequently uses a boxed narrative as the many characters describe their brushes with the mighty Cthulhu and his human worshippers. This ultimately leads to a physical confrontation with the awakened Old One in his mysterious city.

"Toto, we're not in Dunwich anymore."

THE MONSTER/EFFECTS:

When he finally appears, the titular monster is realized with stop-motion effects. While it is not particularly good stop motion it feels appropriate to the overall 1920’s tone of the film.

"Dr. Zoidberg, is that you?"

In the vast and complicated Lovecraft pantheon, Cthulhu is a giant god/monster/alien slumbering beneath a “Cyclopean” city on an island in the Pacific. He is worshiped as a god by human cultists but he is utterly unknowable and indifferent to humanity. He doesn’t have a ton of screen time in Call of Cthulhu so you don’t get a really good look at the stop motion puppet which is probably for the best.

MONSTERS FEATURED:

The Great Old One, Cthulhu.

Love craft, for the gal on the go.

WHERE TO WATCH

As of 2026, it does not seem to be streaming anywhere. Your best bet may be to track down a DVD on eBay or elsewhere on the secondary market. The DVD features interviews with the creators and a good amount of extras.

He's the hero this city deserves.

MOST MEMORABLE SEQUENCE:

The whole movie is remarkable and probably like nothing you have ever seen. It’s worth checking out for the novelty if no other reason.

SEQUELS:

None.


TRAILER:





SEE ALSO:

Dagon (2001), Lovecraft Country (HBO)

TRIVIA:

*H. P. Lovecraft was a racist, a snob, and probably the 19th Century equivalent of an incel but ultimately a visionary and a genius.

*For many years Guillermo del Toro had been attempting to shoot his adaptation of Lovecraft's other major work, the novella At The Mountains of Madness, which has influenced such movies as The Thing and even Alien vs. Predator. He had worked on it for years and it had reached various levels of preproduction but after seeing Ridley Scott's Prometheus he declared the project dead presumably because it was very similar to what he had planned in his movie. It doesn't seem as though he has changed his mind in the ensuing years. Sadly, it will have to sit atop the pile of fascinating unmade del Toro movies.