Maybe it’s a bad sign that no one’s started a thread about this yet, but what did you guys think of Phone Booth? Short, short version of what I thought–I liked it, but I don’t think I’d like to see it again now that I know the ending.
The first thing that struck me was Keifer’s voice. First, that they him sort of omniscient-sounding like The Shadow instead of making it sound like he was actually talking over a telephone. I think that helped the audience identify with him as a conscience rather than a psychotic caller.
Second, Keifer’s voice was great. Even better than Jeremy Irons’ badguy calls in Die Hard: With A Vengeance (Hahahaha! I didn’t say ‘Simon Says!’). I would hope at the very least that the people from our weekly 24 threads saw this film. And yes, that probably did influence me to see and enjoy this movie.
Third, Forest Whitaker really impressed me. I loved the level-headedness of his character (similar to the bad guy he played in Panic Room).
I do, however have one really big lingering question. At the end, we are meant to believe that cops think the Pizza Guy did it, right? But wouldn’t since Stu actually talked to the Pizza Guy, wouldn’t he realize that the Pizza Guy didn’t sound anything like the caller, Keifer? Or are we to assume that Stu doesn’t even remember what he sounded like since Stu was so dismissive of him?
And why would The Caller, whose other two victims were indeed bad guys, kill an innocent (or so we are led to believe) pizza guy to get away?
*Originally posted by ElwoodCuse * I do, however have one really big lingering question. At the end, we are meant to believe that cops think the Pizza Guy did it, right? But wouldn’t since Stu actually talked to the Pizza Guy, wouldn’t he realize that the Pizza Guy didn’t sound anything like the caller, Keifer? Or are we to assume that Stu doesn’t even remember what he sounded like since Stu was so dismissive of him?
I’d go with Stu not remembering what the pizza guy sounded like. He was there a few seconds, instantly dismissed as Not Important, then Stu had other things on his mind for over an hour. What does the cashier at the grocery store you trade at sound like? Would you recognize his/her voice on the phone?
What I was wondering was how did the caller lure the pizza guy to that decrepit hotel so quickly after he (p.g.) made the delivery attempt.
**And why would The Caller, whose other two victims were indeed bad guys, kill an innocent (or so we are led to believe) pizza guy to get away? **
While Leon might not be as innocent as the pizza guy after attacking Stu, I don’t think he really deserved a bullet, either.
I found it intriguing that there was no time compression in the movie, at least after the framing narration gets done. From the time the camera picks up Stu and his flunky, the movie is real-time. Kinda like 24, eh?
Keifer’s voice was interesting. In the begining I thought he was trying to channel Hannibal Lecter. I think Keifer did a good job, but I would have also liked to see Michael Keaton in that role (if you’ve seen “Desperate Measures”, you’ll know what I mean about Keaton being the bad guy).
I was quite surprised to find that I liked this movie, considering it was directed by Joel Schumacher.
The Caller calls and orders two pizzas. . . one to be delivered to Collin Farrell in the Phone Booth and the other to be delivered to himself in his hideout and it’s gotta be in that order. When PG arrives at hideout, The Caller slashes PG’s throat. Instant Red Herring!
I’d give the movie a C grade. It reminded me very much of a made-for-tv movie of the week with naughty language added to send it to the big screen.
I liked it as well. I thought they could have done away with the sub plot between Forest Whitaker and the other detective. That was just annoying. And I liked how the cop for once in a movie didn’t have to be hit over the head to figure stuff out. He picked up on it right around the time I would expect a real life police detective to figure out that something was flacky with the situation. One thing that I did wonder about was why they didn’t realize that they pimp guy (forget his name) had been shot in the back, instead of the front. Seems to me, that would have ruled out Stu right away.
Actually, I don’t think that’s how he could have done it. Since the guy was still alive right after the cops raided the room, I doubt he could have been laying there for an hour with a throat cut. I’m not sure how he could have held him prisoner without leaving visiable marks that the police could have seen, but since the movie ended before that, I’m not too concerned about it.
I liked this movie right up until the last 5 minutes. The Pizza Guy being considered the killer right away without anyone thinking twice just didn’t go over well with me. Why would the Swat team just automatically assume the dead guy was the one on the phone? Why was there no search of the rest of the building? How did Keifer/Creepy Phone guy get away?
But what REALLY annoyed me about the ending was the fact that Keifer/Creepy Phone guy not only walked right up to the ambulance but also walked right through the crime scene!! Arrggh! And not only did he walk right through the crime scene, he was also carrying a very large and suspicious-looking bag.
I liked it overall, but, yeah, the ending did lack finesse. As was said, Keifer walks thru the crime scene with what looked like a rifle bag. DUH! Helllo, Mr. Policeman.
Huh? Why is this a problem? The police wouldn’t have recognized him, and they weren’t looking for anyone anyway. The crime scene was already reopened, and people could come and go. It would have been unrealistic for him to be stopped. But I am curious as to why he had the package at all. Wouldn’t he have had to leave the gun with the Pizza Guy?
The reason the cops accepted that Pizza Guy was the Bad Guy was because Stu ID’d him and thought he had a motive (sort of). But really, if Stu had thought it through, he would have realized that doesn’t make any sense. The sniper put way too much preparation into it all to get pissed at him five minutes before calling.
Anyone else notice the scene in which Farrell is talking in the phonebooth on the far left-hand side of the screen, and the majority of the shot is taken up with a massive yellow billboard that reads “Who do you think you are?”
Makes me wonder what other not-so-subtle messages I might have missed. I’ll probably see it again (or at least rent it when it comes out on video) for that reason.
There was still a rifle in the room with the pizza guy. I’m thinking he had 2 rooms and maybe even a partner. One guy holds the pizza guy hostage as a patsy. When the cops look ready to move in Kieffer gives the call to slice and dice the pizza guy and walks out of the building (maybe even a different building) with the actual rifle. I’m suspecting between ballistics, time of death related stuff, and the main character talking about seeing some guy after he wakes up, the detectives would eventually figure out they fucked up.
