One of my fav!!
THE WACPINE OF 'PHONE BOOTH'
WRITING: 7
ATMOSPHERE: 8
CHARACTERS: 7
PRODUCTION: 6
INTRIGUE: 8
NOVELTY: 6
ENJOYMENT: 7
The Good:
What works surprisingly well is the intense and adrenaline-filled performance from Colin Farrell in the lead as well as his pathogenic relationship with the creepily calm Kiefer Sutherland in a brilliant vocal performance. Both performances turn more intense as the film goes on, which adds to the overall tension and thrill.
Forest Whitaker puts in a great performance as well, but that's what wed come to expect from him.
Most of the action happens inside and around a phone booth, but the fierce performances, the constantly shifting angles and the steady flow of new hooks I'm the plot keep the story going and the tension sufficiently high.
The script has its gripping moments, held up by the growing tension, the panicking characters and the sudden spurs of chaos as Stu tries and fails to take over the control of the situation.
The ending is sure to enrage some viewers, but I found it enchantingly different from the norm, even if some kind of proper closure would have been welcome.
The Bad:
The small boxes showing the people Stu talk on the phone with is a funny little idea, but the way the boxes appear on the screen make the production seem very cheap. It's like a high school group working on a project and playing around with Windows Movie Maker for the very first time.
The other performances are average at best, and most of them pretty poor. They lack the weight needed to keep the tension high. They just create chaos that is unpleasant to watch.
Despite the fast-paced editing, the tension between the characters and the disgusting mind games Stu has to go through, there's a general lack of plot progression, which makes the film feel longer than its 80 minutes.
I've always been allergic to generic and cheap thriller film soundtracks, and this one features another one of those.
The Ugly:
Is it just my modern mind playing tricks on me, or did we hear Stu talk about WhatsApp Magazine? Cause that would be creepy foreshadowing!
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WACPINE RATING: 7.00 / 10 = 3,5 stars
If you were trying to make the most boring moving, you might come up with the premise: "Let's put the entire movie in a phonebooth."
Kiefer played it in a voice so much! Film kept me in suspense all the time. I like minimalist cinema.
Intriguing action thriller that let me forget everything else.
Why does this have a high rating? This movie sucks, Colin is such a wimp in this
This wasn't my first time to watch this but it's been so many years since the first time, it was like watching it for the first time. An amazing psychological thriller with a great twist at the end. Even though it's 20+ years old (and naturally the statistics quoted at the beginning of the movie are outdated by far) this is still a great movie, mainly because it's based on something that never gets old: the human instinct to conceal truth. Although the quote stats may be obsolete, there's really nothing here (maybe the phone booth itself!) that feels outdated or so obsolete that it detracts from the film; indeed, the entire film is based solely on a dialogue. This is NOT an "action" movie, so don't be misled or confused by the cover art; it's a psychological thriller that Colin Farrell and Kiefer Sutherland did a superb job at. Would I watch it again? Absolutely. This is one of the better movies I've seen in awhile. Highly recommended for those who enjoy a good suspense/thriller film.
amazing movie. 10/10 I like how he plays with the main character.
"Isn't it funny? You hear a phone ring and it could be anybody. But a ringing phone has to be answered, doesn't it?"
It has a fun premise and Colin Farrell elevates almost anything that he is in (except you Total Recall). I feel like it could've been a little more on the fun side and a little longer, but it's a good rewatch.
Kiefer Sutherland’s character is everything Jigsaw strived to be in the Saw franchise.
I am always impressed with films that almost entirely take place in one small setting as they have to do everything right (characterization, dialogue, performances, score, direction, etc) to pull it off.
Also, Ben Foster has one of the most incredible cameo’s as Big Q.
"But isn't it wonderful to remember a time that America was once so innocent that all we had to worry about was the next 'Batman' movie?"
You can say whatever you about him, but there's no denying the vibrant talent that was Joel Schumacher. From what I've heard from co-stars who worked with Joel, he sounds like a great guy and the type of director that helped lead his actors along the way.
Last year this guy gave one hell of an interview to vulture and not holding back about his personal life. One of the most entertaining interviews ever. I will never forget it.
A man with such a random filmography like: The Lost Boys, Falling Down, Batman Forever, Batman & Robin, 8mm, The Phantom of the Opera, A Time to Kill, Phone Booth, and Flatliners.
While not all of them are hits, but at least you remember them.
RIP Joel Schumacher
a pretty decent film. to be honest I only watched it cause I wanted to stare at Colin Farrell for an hour and 20 minutes
It was alright... Fortunately it was quite short which makes it quite enjoyable however the unnecessary amount of swearing distracts from the film completely during the first half. Not a lot happens, but it's well made and you're never quite sure what's going to happen next. Probably not worth watching unless you have 90 minutes to fill.
Shout by JordyVIP 8BlockedParent2022-01-11T22:23:41Z— updated 2022-01-22T15:37:03Z
The material very schlocky and predictable, and yet it takes itself way too seriously.
The tone is all over the place. For example, the central characters are presented as grounded, while the dialogue and some of the side characters lean very much towards the cartoony side.
The production, with the editing style and cinematography in particular, are dated.
I also don’t like how Kiefer Sutherland’s mixed in the audio like a narrator, you never have the sense that he’s actually on the phone with Colin Farrell.
Its only redeeming qualities are the interesting main character (and his arc), the performances by the main actors, and the score (which does a lot of the heavy lifting in creating at least some tension).
3/10