Phone Booth
There are 8 million people in the 5 boroughs of New York, and 12 million in the greater metropolitan area. There are 10 million telephone exchange lines and over 50 phone services. 3 million New Yorke…
Phone Booth
There are 8 million people in the 5 boroughs of New York, and 12 million in the greater metropolitan area. There are 10 million telephone exchange lines and over 50 phone services. 3 million New Yorkers are cell phone users. Despite the proliferation of cell phones about 4.5 million New Yorkers and 2 million visitors use the telephone booths. There is a single telephone booth at the intersection of 53rd and 8th. 300 calls originate daily here, and it has been burglarized 41 times in the last 6 months. Verizon has scheduled this structure to be torn down and turned into a kiosk by 8 am the next day. Stuart Shepard (Colin Farrell) is an arrogant and dishonest New York City publicist who has been having an affair with Pamela McFadden (Katie Holmes) behind the back of his wife Kelly (Radha Mitchell). Stuart is a cell phone user and is going to be the last occupant of the phone booth on 53rd and 8th. Adam (Keith Nobbs) is Stuart's assistant. Stuart bribes policemen to get insider information on celebrities and their private life. He then trades that information with tabloids to get cover spreads for his clients. He even eats free at Mario's (Josh Pais) restaurant for 6 months in exchange for one lousy mention of his place in the Post. Stuart sells Mario to host a party for his client Big Q (Ben Foster), as Stuart was struggling to find a venue for the date that Big Q wanted. Stuart gets Mario to agree to buffet for 80 people in exchange for a load of celebrities and news paper cover. While in Times Square, Stuart uses a public phone booth to contact Pamela, allowing him to avoid detection by Kelly. Stuart calls Pam from the same Phone Booth, at the same time, every day. During the call, he is interrupted by a pizza delivery man who attempts to deliver a free pizza to him, but Stuart aggressively turns him away. As soon as Stuart completes his call, the phone rings. Stuart answers and a man on the other end, who knows his name, warns him not to leave the booth, threatening to tell Kelly about Pam. The man says that he had sent the Pizza to Stuart as he knew he was hungry, and this was going to be a long call. The caller (Kiefer Sutherland) tells Stuart that he has tested two previous individuals who have done wrong deeds in a similar manner (One of them was a German porn King who would not admit that he is a pedophile, the other was a corporate CXO who sold all his stock before the bottom fell out and the little guys lost everything), giving each a chance to reveal the truth to those they wronged, but in both cases they refused and were killed. Stuart must confess his feelings to both Kelly and Pam to avoid the same fate. To demonstrate the threat, the caller fires a suppressed sniper rifle with pinpoint accuracy. The caller claims that he is holding a .30 caliber bolt action, 700 with a carbon one modification, and a state-of-the-art Hensholdt tactical scope. At his range, the exit wound only be the size of a small tangerine. The caller calls Pam on another line and makes Stuart listen in. He tells Pam that Stuart calls her from a pay phone, as his wife monitors her mobile bill (Pam did not know that Stuart was married). He tells Pam that Stuart calls her to the City hotel, as it has cheap rooms for cheap girls, and that Stuart had no intention of helping her in her acting career. The caller then makes Stuart call Kelly, but Stuart won't admit that he wants to sleep with other women. He keeps telling Kelly not to believe anything if she gets a prank call. The booth is approached by three prostitutes demanding to use the phone, but Stuart refuses to leave, without revealing his dilemma. Leon (John Enos III), a pimp, breaks the glass side of the booth, grabs Stuart and pummels him while the prostitutes cheer. The caller offers to "make him stop" and in Stuart's confusion, he inadvertently asks for this; the caller shoots Leon dead. The prostitutes immediately blame Stuart, accusing him of having a gun, as the police and news crews converge on the location. NYPD Captain Ed Ramey (Forest Whitaker) seals off the area and negotiates to make Stuart leave the booth, but he refuses. The caller is confident that the police won't shoot Stuart as the whole incident is being video taped now and the police won't do anything which will surely incriminate them in a lawsuit. When Ramey approaches Stuart, the caller asks Stuart to offend Ramey by saying that he could not satisfy his wife, and which is why she left him. Ramey breaks contact with Stuart and orders the call to the phone booth to be traced, but it is taking time. Stuart tells the caller that there is no way they can incriminate him, but the caller draws his attention to a handgun planted in the roof of the phone booth. As Kelly and Pam both arrive on the scene, the caller demands that Stuart tell Kelly the truth, which he does. The caller then orders Stuart to choose between Kelly and Pam, and the woman he does not choose will be shot. Stuart secretly uses his cell phone to call Kelly, allowing her to overhear his conversation with the caller; she quietly informs Ramey of this. Meanwhile, Stuart continues to confess to everyone that his whole life is a lie, to make himself look better than he really is. Stuart's confession provides sufficient distraction to allow the police to trace the payphone call to a nearby building. Stuart warns the caller that the police are on the way, and the caller replies that if he is caught, he will kill Kelly. Desperate, Stuart grabs the handgun and leaves the booth, begging for the sniper to kill him instead. The police fire upon Stuart, while a SWAT team breaks into the room that the caller was tracked to, only to find a rifle and a man's corpse. Stuart regains consciousness; the police having fired only rubber bullets, stunning but not harming him. Stuart and Kelly happily reconcile. As the police bring down the body, Stuart identifies it as the pizza delivery man from earlier. Stuart gets medical treatment at a local ambulance. After getting a shot from a paramedic, he starts losing consciousness. The real caller passes by, warning Stuart that if his newfound honesty does not last, he will return, before disappearing into the crowd, while the pay phone rings again.
Phone Booth
Crime,Thriller
Film Details
There are 8 million people in the 5 boroughs of New York, and 12 million in the greater metropolitan area. There are 10 million telephone exchange lines and over 50 phone services. 3 million New Yorkers are cell phone users.
Despite the proliferation of cell phones about 4.5 million New Yorkers and 2 million visitors use the telephone booths. There is a single telephone booth at the intersection of 53rd and 8th. 300 calls originate daily here, and it has been burglarized 41 times in the last 6 months.
Verizon has scheduled this structure to be torn down and turned into a kiosk by 8 am the next day. Stuart Shepard (Colin Farrell) is an arrogant and dishonest New York City publicist who has been having an affair with Pamela McFadden (Katie Holmes) behind the back of his wife Kelly (Radha Mitchell). Stuart is a cell phone user and is going to be the last occupant of the phone booth on 53rd and 8th.
Adam (Keith Nobbs) is Stuart's assistant. Stuart bribes policemen to get insider information on celebrities and their private life. He then trades that information with tabloids to get cover spreads for his clients.
He even eats free at Mario's (Josh Pais) restaurant for 6 months in exchange for one lousy mention of his place in the Post. Stuart sells Mario to host a party for his client Big Q (Ben Foster), as Stuart was struggling to find a venue for the date that Big Q wanted. Stuart gets Mario to agree to buffet for 80 people in exchange for a load of celebrities and news paper cover.
While in Times Square, Stuart uses a public phone booth to contact Pamela, allowing him to avoid detection by Kelly. Stuart calls Pam from the same Phone Booth, at the same time, every day. During the call, he is interrupted by a pizza delivery man who attempts to deliver a free pizza to him, but Stuart aggressively turns him away.
As soon as Stuart completes his call, the phone rings. Stuart answers and a man on the other end, who knows his name, warns him not to leave the booth, threatening to tell Kelly about Pam. The man says that he had sent the Pizza to Stuart as he knew he was hungry, and this was going to be a long call.
The caller (Kiefer Sutherland) tells Stuart that he has tested two previous individuals who have done wrong deeds in a similar manner (One of them was a German porn King who would not admit that he is a pedophile, the other was a corporate CXO who sold all his stock before the bottom fell out and the little guys lost everything), giving each a chance to reveal the truth to those they wronged, but in both cases they refused and were killed. Stuart must confess his feelings to both Kelly and Pam to avoid the same fate. To demonstrate the threat, the caller fires a suppressed sniper rifle with pinpoint accuracy.
The caller claims that he is holding a .30 caliber bolt action, 700 with a carbon one modification, and a state-of-the-art Hensholdt tactical scope. At his range, the exit wound only be the size of a small tangerine. The caller calls Pam on another line and makes Stuart listen in.
He tells Pam that Stuart calls her from a pay phone, as his wife monitors her mobile bill (Pam did not know that Stuart was married). He tells Pam that Stuart calls her to the City hotel, as it has cheap rooms for cheap girls, and that Stuart had no intention of helping her in her acting career. The caller then makes Stuart call Kelly, but Stuart won't admit that he wants to sleep with other women.
He keeps telling Kelly not to believe anything if she gets a prank call. The booth is approached by three prostitutes demanding to use the phone, but Stuart refuses to leave, without revealing his dilemma. Leon (John Enos III), a pimp, breaks the glass side of the booth, grabs Stuart and pummels him while the prostitutes cheer.
The caller offers to "make him stop" and in Stuart's confusion, he inadvertently asks for this; the caller shoots Leon dead. The prostitutes immediately blame Stuart, accusing him of having a gun, as the police and news crews converge on the location. NYPD Captain Ed Ramey (Forest Whitaker) seals off the area and negotiates to make Stuart leave the booth, but he refuses.
The caller is confident that the police won't shoot Stuart as the whole incident is being video taped now and the police won't do anything which will surely incriminate them in a lawsuit. When Ramey approaches Stuart, the caller asks Stuart to offend Ramey by saying that he could not satisfy his wife, and which is why she left him. Ramey breaks contact with Stuart and orders the call to the phone booth to be traced, but it is taking time.
Stuart tells the caller that there is no way they can incriminate him, but the caller draws his attention to a handgun planted in the roof of the phone booth. As Kelly and Pam both arrive on the scene, the caller demands that Stuart tell Kelly the truth, which he does. The caller then orders Stuart to choose between Kelly and Pam, and the woman he does not choose will be shot.
Stuart secretly uses his cell phone to call Kelly, allowing her to overhear his conversation with the caller; she quietly informs Ramey of this. Meanwhile, Stuart continues to confess to everyone that his whole life is a lie, to make himself look better than he really is. Stuart's confession provides sufficient distraction to allow the police to trace the payphone call to a nearby building.
Stuart warns the caller that the police are on the way, and the caller replies that if he is caught, he will kill Kelly. Desperate, Stuart grabs the handgun and leaves the booth, begging for the sniper to kill him instead. The police fire upon Stuart, while a SWAT team breaks into the room that the caller was tracked to, only to find a rifle and a man's corpse.
Stuart regains consciousness; the police having fired only rubber bullets, stunning but not harming him. Stuart and Kelly happily reconcile. As the police bring down the body, Stuart identifies it as the pizza delivery man from earlier.
Stuart gets medical treatment at a local ambulance. After getting a shot from a paramedic, he starts losing consciousness. The real caller passes by, warning Stuart that if his newfound honesty does not last, he will return, before disappearing into the crowd, while the pay phone rings again..