After seeing what he'd done with the Batman franchise and Nicolas Cage in "8MM", you wouldn't believe that Joel Schumacher could make a good movie, would you? "Phone Booth", starring Colin Farrell and Kiefer Sutherland, is a surprisingly astounding film and a near-perfect example of psychological thriller. And I insist on both words because none of them is separable from the other.
Farrell is Stu, a NY press agent who oversees everybody and has a wife (Radha Mitchell), as well as a mistress (Katie Holmes). He seems to appreciate his lifestyle but everything is about to change into an unforgettable way.
After Stu called up his mistress in a phone booth, the phone rings. Stu answers, only to find himself ear-to-ear with a sniper (voiced by Sutherland).
It's now that the twisted mind game begins. The sniper is a typical one, ie. that he knows everything about everybody, including Stu. He claims to be some kind of angel-like figure who wants to force sinners to expiate their faults to the society. And this time, he aims Stu.
Rarely have I seen a thriller so exciting, so mind-torturing. These sensations are mainly due to Farrell and Sutherland.
Farrell offers an extraordinary performance as Stu. We can feel his fear, his anger, his desperation during the short 80 minutes of the movie. His transformation is real and sincere. We really can feel it.
Sutherland's role is as great, but for different reasons. His task is gigantic: to sound menacing, bright, skillful and sarcastic only with his voice. And he fits perfectly. The result is that the Sutherland-voiced sniper becomes as terrifying and frightening as other mind players, such as Hannibal Lecter.
Merit should also be given to screenwriter Larry Cohen. The "Phone Booth" script is easily his best after "Carrie", which he wrote almost 25 years earlier. The story is simple, but very intelligent, very developed.
The conclusion is stupendous. At first, I believed that I was watching another one of these thriller conclusions that are half-cooked because they can't render justice to the main part. But then the plot twists and we just can't believe that we've been fooled like that.
I also liked the cinematography. Mainly the screen divided in multiple parts, so the viewer can follow many scenes at once. It's nicely depicted by director Schumacher.
I deserve great regards for "Phone Booth", especially for Farrell and Sutherland. It's one of the greatest thrillers of the still young 21st century and it acts as some kind of redemption for critic scapegoat Joel Schumacher.
By the way, would you dare to go into a phone booth after you see this movie?
Farrell is Stu, a NY press agent who oversees everybody and has a wife (Radha Mitchell), as well as a mistress (Katie Holmes). He seems to appreciate his lifestyle but everything is about to change into an unforgettable way.
After Stu called up his mistress in a phone booth, the phone rings. Stu answers, only to find himself ear-to-ear with a sniper (voiced by Sutherland).
It's now that the twisted mind game begins. The sniper is a typical one, ie. that he knows everything about everybody, including Stu. He claims to be some kind of angel-like figure who wants to force sinners to expiate their faults to the society. And this time, he aims Stu.
Rarely have I seen a thriller so exciting, so mind-torturing. These sensations are mainly due to Farrell and Sutherland.
Farrell offers an extraordinary performance as Stu. We can feel his fear, his anger, his desperation during the short 80 minutes of the movie. His transformation is real and sincere. We really can feel it.
Sutherland's role is as great, but for different reasons. His task is gigantic: to sound menacing, bright, skillful and sarcastic only with his voice. And he fits perfectly. The result is that the Sutherland-voiced sniper becomes as terrifying and frightening as other mind players, such as Hannibal Lecter.
Merit should also be given to screenwriter Larry Cohen. The "Phone Booth" script is easily his best after "Carrie", which he wrote almost 25 years earlier. The story is simple, but very intelligent, very developed.
The conclusion is stupendous. At first, I believed that I was watching another one of these thriller conclusions that are half-cooked because they can't render justice to the main part. But then the plot twists and we just can't believe that we've been fooled like that.
I also liked the cinematography. Mainly the screen divided in multiple parts, so the viewer can follow many scenes at once. It's nicely depicted by director Schumacher.
I deserve great regards for "Phone Booth", especially for Farrell and Sutherland. It's one of the greatest thrillers of the still young 21st century and it acts as some kind of redemption for critic scapegoat Joel Schumacher.
By the way, would you dare to go into a phone booth after you see this movie?