A slick New York publicist who picks up a ringing receiver in a phone booth is told that if he hangs up, he'll be killed... and the little red light from a laser rifle sight is proof that the caller isn't kidding.
Colin Farrell
Stu Shepard
Kiefer Sutherland
The Caller
Forest Whitaker
Captain Ramey
Radha Mitchell
Kelly Shepard
Katie Holmes
Pamela McFadden
Paula Jai Parker
Felicia
Arian Ash
Corky
Tia Texada
Asia
John Enos III
Leon
Richard T. Jones
Sergeant Cole
Keith Nobbs
Adam
Dell Yount
Pizza Guy
James MacDonald
Negotiator
Josh Pais
Mario
Yorgo Constantine
ESU Commander
Colin Patrick Lynch
ESU Technician
Troy Gilbert
ESU Sniper
Seth William Meier
Officer McDuff
Svetlana Efremova
Erica
Billy Erb
Lars
Domenick Lombardozzi
Wyatt
Maile Flanagan
Lana
Tom Reynolds
Richard
Julio Oscar Mechoso
Hispanic Medic
Karara Muhoro
Nigerian Vendor
Zidu Chen
Korean Husband
Shu Lan Tuan
Korean Wife
Dean Cochran
Reporter #1
Amy Kowallis
Reporter #2
Tory Kittles
Reporter #3
Bruce Roberts
Reporter #4
Tyree Michael Simpson
Doorman
Dean Tarrolly
Newscaster
Mary Randle
Dispatcher
Paul Fontana
Dispatcher
Steve Alterman
(voice)
Kimberly Bailey
(voice)
Jason Broad
(voice)
Lanei Chapman
(voice)
Django Craig
(voice)
Judith Durand
(voice)
Greg Finley
(voice)
Ramón Franco
(voice)
Anneliese Goldman
(voice)
Rick Gonzales
(voice)
Tracy Metro
(voice)
Jason Pace
(voice)
Juan Pope
(voice)
Nicole Prescott
(voice)
Cheryl Tyre Smith
(voice)
John Vargas
(voice)
Tanya Vidal
(voice)
Billy 'Sly' Williams
(voice)
Ruth Zalduondo
(voice)
Ben Foster
Big Q (uncredited)
Jared Leto
Bobby (uncredited)
Mia Cottet
Lu Ann (uncredited)
Director
Joel Schumacher
Screenplay
Larry Cohen
January 16, 2020
6
Phone Booth dials up its millennial tension through suspenseful confined calls. Joel Schumacher is a rather inconsistent director. Unusual, yet capricious. From ‘The Lost Boys’ to ‘Batman & Robin’, his career has been considerably scattershot in terms of quality. Phone Booth, whilst quintessentially being a product of its time, happens to be his most simplistic. An arrogant publicist is held hostage in a phone booth by a mysterious sniper who offers him an ultimatum.
A hyperbolised exercise in absolution from an absurdist’s perspective, Schumacher delivers a nail-biting thriller from the confinement of one besmirched public booth. Unscrupulous sex shops on one side of the grubby New York street, and a religiously inclined series of posters dictating “who do you think you are?” on the other side. It may just be a lightning paced disposable techno thriller to many, but if you divulge into the finer details you’ll notice it is overwhelmed with morality. The repentance of sins. Cleansing the soul from immorality. The harsh tones of Sutherland’s antagonistic voice, likening himself to a higher (or lower...) entity, offering Farrell’s Stu a chance for redemption. A surprisingly thematic endeavour for Schumacher, whether intentional or not, the religious symbolism in its subtle visuals or literary narrative were certainly profound.
It smooths out the neo-noir roughness that forces this thriller to be nothing more than disposable entertainment. Aside from Farrell’s strong performance as the arrogantly unlikeable Stu and Sutherland’s menacing tone, the supporting cast were mediocre at best. Whitaker, Mitchell and Holmes rarely had an opportunity to shine within the mucky street and had a tendency to overact. The act of forgiveness, whilst being a pivotal point to the whole ordeal, seemed incredibly vacuous without much deliberate intervention. All too easy, considering how long Stu kept his unfaithful behaviour up for. Cohen’s script was sharp and concise, occasionally stagnating in moments of desperation when not knowing how to progress the hostage situation further.
Stevens’ editing was swifter than Sutherland cocking his sniper rifle multiple times. On screen graphics to display scenes running simultaneously, such as police officers tracing the encrypted phone call, keeping the pace consistently tight. Some of visuals, such as the red dot from the sniper, obviously smelt of fakery as well as the space effects showcasing the satellite sending communications to mobile phone chips etc. Y’know, common tropes from films created in the early naughties.
As I said, it’s very much a film of its time. Yet despite the rough disposable nature of Phone Booth, it’s a much more entertaining call then being on hold for an hour and a half. I can tell you that from experience...
Status:
Released
Original Language:
English
Budget:
$13,000,000.00
Revenue:
$97,837,138.00