"Batman" and "Batman Returns" were directed by Tim Burton, who is my favorite director right now. Unfortunately, after "Batman Returns," Tim Burton was replaced by a different director, Joel Schumacher. Prior to directing his first "Batman" movie, Joel Schumacher had made some really good, dark movies. He directed "The Lost Boys," "Flatliners," and "Falling Down." His unique films made it seem like maybe he could make a good "Batman" movie. Nope. He first made "Batman Forever," which most "Batman" purists hated, but the mainstream audiences seemed to enjoy. I'm a "Batman" purist, so I hated it. It was ridiculously cheesy, and went the opposite direction that Tim Burton went. Still, no one could have predicted what would come next. "Batman and Robin" may very well be one of the worst movies ever made. "Batman" purists were ready to kill Joel Schumacher, and even mainstream moviegoers thought that the movie sucked. "Batman & Robin" made "Batman Forever" look like "Seven." To give you an idea, in "Batman & Robin," there's a part where "Batman" wants to make a purchase, so he whips out a "Batman" credit card and says something to the effect of "I never leave home without it." There's another part when "Robin" actually screams "Cowabunga!" Joel Schumacher took the "Batman" franchise, which Tim Burton correctly made dark and gritty, and turned it into a campy shitfest that was as corny as the old TV show from the 1960s. "Batman & Robin" was a joke, a cinematic abortion, and it pretty much destroyed the "Batman" franchise. It shoulda been apparent early on when Schumacher said in an interview that "Batman" needs to "lighten up." Joel Schumacher pissed off a lotta comic book geeks, who are a lot like Star Wars geeks and Star Trek geeks; very protective, and very passionate.
In several interviews since then, Joel Schumacher seems humbled by the experience. He admits that he went about it all wrong, but it might be a while before comic book geeks totally forgive him. For me, in order to forgive him, he's gotta first admit that he screwed up (which he did) and secondly, he's gotta make some great movies. After "Batman & Robin," he made "8mm," "Flawless," "Tigerland," and "Bad Company." I saw "8mm," and it was pretty good, but it coulda been better. It had a really good script by Andrew Kevin Walker, but the movie shoulda and coulda been a lot more sinister. I haven't seen "Flawless," nor have I seen "Tigerland," but critics seem to like "Tigerland" quite a bit. Finally, there's "Bad Company," which starred Anthony Hopkins and Chris Rock. I didn't see that movie, but it was a box office bomb, and critics hated it. I should probably see "Tigerland," but I haven't yet, so I can only go on "8mm," which was good, but not good enough. Joel Schumacher screwed up big, ya know? With the release of "Phone Booth," Joel Schumacher gets another chance to redeem himself.
I remember when 20th Century Fox was trying to get "Phone Booth" made. They needed a director, and they needed a star. The concept was intriguing to me; a guy picks up a ringing phone in a phone booth, and a sniper has a rifle pointing at him, threatening to kill him if he hangs up. The fact that almost the whole movie is about a guy in a phone booth interested me, so I followed the film's development. I remember when there were several big name actors who showed interest, including Jim Carrey and Will Smith, but for whatever reason, they never signed on. I remember that Michael Bay (director of "The Rock," "Armageddon," and "Pearl Harbor") was gonna direct the movie, but it didn't happen. Eventually, the studio decided that Joel Schumacher would direct it, and Schumacher chose Colin Farrell, an unknown at the time, to star. I had no idea who he was. They would be working together a second time, because Farrell starred in Joel Schumacher's film, "Tigerland." When I heard who was chosen to star and direct, I was disappointed, but I knew I'd see the movie anyway, and I'm glad I did.
Since signing to star in "Phone Booth," Colin Farrell has played high-profile roles in "Minority Report," "The Recruit," and "Daredevil." With those movies, he's proven that he has acting talent. In "Phone Booth," he carries the film with ease, and does a fantastic job with the character. Colin Farrell handles the role like an old pro, and it's obvious that he's gonna be around for a while. The Irish bloke is a talented bastard. Forest Whitaker is also in the movie, and he plays "Captain Ramey," and although I don't think it's normally the job of a police captain, he also works as the negotiator in the movie. I've always liked Forest Whitaker's acting, because he has a certain "everyman" quality that doesn't seem fake. It works well for him in this movie. Playing the role of Colin Farrell's wife is Radha Mitchell (she was the female lead in "Pitch Black," and she was in "High Art" with Ally Sheedy), who is pretty good, and does a good (though thankless) job of being sullen and sympathetic. Then again, she did the same thing in "Pitch Black" and "High Art." Does the woman ever smile? She should do a comedy, show off those pearly whites, ya know? Katie Holmes plays Colin Farrell's mistress, and I'm surprised she agreed to do this movie. She's a pretty big name considering how small the role is. She's pretty good in the role, I guess, but it's a real throwaway. Finally, Kiefer Sutherland is the voice of the caller. He does a great job of voice acting here. He's scary, funny, poignant, and chilling, all at the same time. He does an awesome job. Sutherland was in three other Joel Schumacher films before this, "The Lost Boys," "Flatliners," and "A Time to Kill." Right now, he's the star of the great TV show, "24," which tells a story in real time, much like "Phone Booth." Kiefer Sutherland actually replaced a lesser known actor, Ron Eldard, as the voice of the caller. I'm not sure why, though.
The script for "Phone Booth" was written by Larry Cohen (he's done a lotta writing over the years, but I'm not really familiar with any of his work), and I think that he wrote an awesome script. The nature of the story has me thinking that it has holes in it, but I can't find any. That doesn't mean they're not there, though. It's a well-written story, and a vicious morality tale. As for the directing, I gotta say, I'm impressed. Joel Schumacher does a really good job keeping the movie fast-paced and entertaining. This kinda movie can easily drag if in the hands of a lesser director, but Joel Schumacher made it entertaining and fun to watch. Also, it helps that the movie is less than 90 minutes long.
I like "Phone Booth" a lot, and Colin Farrell will hopefully get a lotta work because of it, though I don't think he needs the help right now. As for Joel Schumacher, well, I'm starting to accept him more, but he's gotta direct one more great movie before I can be like, "alright Joel, all is forgiven." With "Phone Booth," he's getting there, and I have to take my hat off to him. This is an awesome flick.
Scale of 1-10: 9