3/17/2003

Phone Booth
"Who do you think you are?" asks the billboard behind the phone booth. Colin Farrell is forced to ask both a sniper and himself this question to try to get out of the nightmare he's put himself in.

Farrell plays Stuart Shepard, a hard-working publicist who lies and deceives his way into the big leagues. Now, he enjoys a nice life with many connections throughout the city and a loving wife at home. He's also seeing someone else, Pam, played by Katie Holmes in a very small role. This has made him a target of one particular sniper (Kiefer Sutherland) who preys upon people who have done bad things in their lives. After he enters this phone booth where he calls Pam to avoid his wife Kelly to see the calls on his cell phone, he receives a call from the sniper, and soon becomes the target. Things get more complicated when the sniper shoots an innocent bouncer in the street, something witnesses believe Stu did himself. What ensues is a dangerous game where Stu must negotiate his way out of the nightmare he's in with the sniper while the police surround him with guns in hand waiting for him to come out. All that the sniper wants is for Stu to fess up to all that can hear the sound of his voice, including Pam and Kelly who have now joined the scene and unknowingly have become targets themselves. How will Stu get out of this one? Only time will tell, and that's almost run out.

In terms of execution, the film is excellent. The action is non-stop and the tension is high. You can't take your eyes off it, eagerly awaiting what comes next. Credit director Joel Schumacher, who will get praise for this after duds like Bad Company, 8MM, and Batman & Robin. It's a simple story where every step leads to a more complicated situation. Will he step away? Will he use the gun and take matters into his own hands? One minor quibble is the motivation for the sniper to do this. Sure, having a mistress is bad to have, but is it really worth choosing life or death over it? There are far worse people he could be targeting. But still, it's all too riveting for someone to overlook this film. 3 stars

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