A Mere Mortal (1991) Simple Mortel
IMDb meta-data is a runtime of 1 hour 25 minutes, rated 6.5 by 253 cinematizens.
Genre: Sy Fy
DNA: France.
Verdict: Effective.
Tagline: Who is calling, please?
A library rat whose speciality is very dead, very obscure languages from Meso-America neglects his girlfriend and ignores his only friend as he toils away in Paris. Then he starts hearing things. At first it just static on radios in the apartment or car but it slowly come into tune though only briefly. It is an androgynous voice speaking a very ancient obscure dead language which he has lately been studying for he is one of the few in the world familiar with this tongue.
These messages in Mayan, let’s call it that to keep it simple, come on a car radio, a stereo, a telephone answering machine, a Walkman and so on always when only he can hear them. He begins to think he is going mad and is unable to tell anyone for fear of ridicule or worse. The messages tell him to do this or that with the threat that if he does not a catastrophe will occur. Escalation ensues. When he hesitates a catastrophe does occur, so he then complies to avert another.
By the way the Mayan dialogue has French subtitles and English ones overlaid on top of them. The result is by Georges Braque.
The atmosphere of confusion, dread, and paranoia is nicely done without any gimmicks. Bruce Campbell does not leap from the shadows. Is it really happening or is he going nuts? Or both.
Moreover, there is a resolution of sorts at end. Think Tron.