What is so tempting about a ringing phone that it must always be answered? "Phone Booth" begs this question, and for Stu Shepard (Colin Farrell), the allure of a ringing phone launches him into a terrifying experience.
From a first glance, Shepard would not seem the type to be caught in such a situation: he is a smooth talking, cunning publicist. Every word he says is a lie, and he cares for no one but himself. Though he is married, he has his sights on another woman, Pam McFadden (Katie Holmes), an aspiring actress who does not know Shepard is married. They officially are not having an affair, but Shepard lusts for her.
Shepard calls Pam every day from the same New York City phone booth so that his wife can't track his cell phone calls on the bill. One seemingly ordinary day, an incoming call comes while Shepard is in the phone booth. Shepard answers, expecting to hear Pam on the other end, but instead it is the eerie voice of The Caller (Kiefer Sutherland).
The Caller then begins to entrap Shepard in a dangerous game. He has been observing Shepard and listening to his conversations in the phone booth for quite some time. The Caller knows Shepard's vices and secrets and intends to bring them out into the open. Like the villain in "Seven" and other movies, The Caller feels it his duty to rid the world of those who are corrupt. It seems that The Caller already has murdered two people he has deemed to be undesirable.
Shepard is dubious until The Caller begins to go into the specifics of Shepard's life. The Caller then threatens Shepard: "hang up the phone and I'll shoot you," "leave the phone booth and I'll shoot you," "tell anyone whom you are talking to and I'll shoot you." The Caller then proves the severity of his threats when he shoots a person on the street. Bystanders think Shepard killed him and the police soon arrive, poised at a moment's notice to shoot Shepard.
Shepard's fate lies in the hands of the compassionate Police Captain Ramey (Forest Whitaker) and the resolve of Shepard to confess his sins. The hold up in the phone booth is played out on TV across the city and draws quite a crowd.
The whole movie takes place in the phone booth and on the immediate street. Now, before you pass this up as a crazy notion or quite possibly the most boring plot imaginable, understand that it is, in actuality, an exciting, fast-paced movie. The editing is quick and sharp. The camera is often very mobile, pacing around the phone booth, frantically following Shepard's eyes as he desperately searches for The Caller hiding in one of the surrounding buildings. The dexterity of the camera creates a lively and frenetic atmosphere.
"Phone Booth" rests solely on the shoulders of Colin Farrell, and he carries it off with ease. Farrell brings intensity and vulnerability necessary to the role and to the movie. Though he plays an American, Farrell's Irish accent slips in every now and then. While this would usually be considered bad acting, it's Colin Farrell, so all is forgiven.
Despite the lack of set change, "Phone Booth" also stays afloat thanks to the menacing voice of Kiefer Sutherland as The Caller. While Shepard is on the phone with The Caller, his face is never shown. The only information the audience is given about The Caller is his voice. Sutherland's voice is smooth, thick, and becomes increasingly threatening. At times, it seems to consume the screen.
Though a secondary character, Forest Whitaker infuses his role of Captain Ramey with compassion and thoughtfulness -- a necessary contradiction to the madness swirling inside and around the phone booth.Katie Holmes and Radha Mitchell (as Shepard's wife) round out the cast. They are relegated to minor roles, like most wives/girlfriends/significant others in many action-oriented films.
The movie revolves around Shepard caught in the claustrophobia of his lies and the phone booth, encircled by cops who think he is a murderer and a crazed man with a rifle.
One of the aims of "Phone Booth", I assume, is to force the audience to question their own lives after they leave the theater. A billboard behind the phone booth in the movie reads, "Who do you think you are?" and seems to be directed to the audience as much as Shepard. I doubt that "Phone Booth" will cause many to bare their souls and sins, but it accomplishes its other purpose: to be highly entertaining, lively and suspenseful.
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