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PHONE BOOTH
Review by Gordon Justesen
Stars:
Colin Farrell, Forest Whitaker, Radha Mitchell, Katie Holmes, Kiefer Sutherland
Director: Joel Schumacher
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Surround
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1, Full Screen 1.33:1
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Features: See Review
Length: 81 Minutes
Release Date: July 8, 2003
“Isn’t
it funny? You hear a phone ringing, and it could be anybody…but a ringing
phone has to be answered, doesn’t it?”
Film
***1/2
There’s no
denying Colin Farrell’s fast and furious rise to superstardom. Few actors have
been able to shoot right to the top so quickly, and it’s easy to suggest that
as a result of his performance in Phone
Booth, Farrell will become one of the top leading men in the movies. This
live wire of a thriller, which reunites Farrell with Tigerland
director Joel Schumacher, is a uniquely executed movie exercise. In
addition, it is also something of a morality play, with the setting confined to
one area, a phone booth, for nearly the entire movie. And for Farrell, it
provides the ultimate breakthrough role, as his character is the subject of the
movie’s every minute.
The story, set in
Manhattan, centers around Farrell’s Stu Shepard, a fast-talking, ultra-sleazy
publicist whose entire process of maneuvering is based on a cycle of lies.
Always on his cell phone, Stu’s endless business calls are a part of this
cycle. He is married, but being the kind of person he is, Stu is consistently on
the lookout for something a little extra. Each day, he makes certain to call his
favorite client, and potential mistress, Pam (Katie Holmes), from the phone
booth located at 53rd and 8th. His reason for calling from
there is that his wife oversees the cell phone bills. After calling Pam to set
up an intimate rendezvous, Stu answers the ringing phone, thinking it’s her,
but it isn’t.
The voice, on the
other end of the line is that of a harsh, sinister individual who insists that
he is watching Stu’s every move. Stu, at first, takes the whole charade for a
prank, but is soon proved otherwise once the sound of a gun being cocked is
heard. Instantly frightened, Stu is then told if he hangs up, he will be shot on
sight. This sparks a series of confrontations with others trying to use the
phone, which in turn makes Stu out to be somewhat of an insane person. When an
infuriated street pimp takes a bat to the booth, threatening to kill Stu, the
voice proves his point by taking out the man with his rifle.
As the incident
garners several witnesses, all of whom notice Stu’s erratic behavior, they all
take him for the shooter. He clearly doesn’t have a gun, though the black cell
phone in his pocket won’t save his neck. When the cops hit the scene, under
the command of Capt. Ramey (Forest Whitaker), even they don’t know what to
make of Stu’s status. Insisting that he cannot hang up under any
circumstances, they take him for a nutcase. He convinces the police to a point
that the man he is talking to his psychiatrist.
The power of the
film is the byplay between Stu and the mysterious sniper, whose voice is
provided by a wonderfully sinister Kiefer Sutherland. The sniper is no fake, as
he reveals to Stu that he previously killed two other lying, cheating
businessmen just like him, one a porn entrepreneur and the other a corrupt CEO.
Before long, Stu realizes that this is more than a hostage situation, as the
incident may just result in him being forced to come clean to all the people
he’s relentlessly lied to or cheated.
Phone
Booth, originally a 2002 release, was understandably pushed back to the
following year for a good reason. A series of horrific sniper killings plagued
the east coast right at the time of the movie’s slated release, and a decision
was made in good taste to hold the film back. As a result, the movie ended up a
surprise hit, having cost only 10 million to make and raking in more than enough
to break even.
I’m glad it
caught the light of day because it’s a powerful piece that is superbly acted
and remarkably shot. Director Joel Schumacher has had his share of hits and
misses (his last movie, Bad Company,
was so bad that I didn’t even want to waste time with a review), and Phone
Booth is unquestionably one his best films to date. With nearly all of the
film confined to one setting, Schumacher juices up the screen with dynamic split
screen and montage sequences that add solid effect to an already suspenseful
tale. It is a pure return to form for Schumacher, as this ranks with his equally
thrillers, 8MM and Falling Down.
One of the best
early releases of this year, Phone Booth
is strong, ultimately effective, and engrossing.
Video
****
It seems that with
every release or so, like The Transporter
and Just Married, Fox resorts to the
old school way of DVD presentations; that of double-sided discs, which include
the widescreen version on one side, and the full frame on the other. What
surprises me even more is the fact that the picture quality of the anamorphic
presentation manages to be as remarkably detailed. The use of color is
particularly strong, as Schumacher gives the film a good touch of steel blue,
and the sharply done split screen effects payoff enormously well. A consistently
sharp and downright exceptional presentation.
Audio
****
Having seen the
movie in its theatrical run and being overwhelmed by the numerous technical
effects, I had a feeling that it would result in an astounding DVD audio
presentation, and I was absolutely right. The 5.1 mix is a bang right from the
start, and as the movie progresses, it makes you feel like you’re literally in
the middle of the action, as a result of the sharp audio techniques used in the
film. The sinister sound of Kiefer Sutherland’s wonderful voice is worth the
price alone. Indeed, one of the best sounding audio presentations of this year.
Features
**
Included on this
disc is a commentary track with Joel Schumacher, a trailer, and a bonus trailer
for the upcoming theatrical release, Garage
Days. While I admit to being a bit let down by this notion, I suppose it is
all that could be provided for the disc since the movie took only ten days to
shoot.
Summary:
