With its supernatural twist, "The Black Phone" was dead set in providing a different take on a kind of narrative that most of us is all too familiar with already. The result was a great and thrilling experience with just the right amount of horrific and disturbing moments to keep viewer's interest at a constant beat and peak.
A string of kidnappings involving young boys grips a small town in Denver. The only known MO of the child abductor known as The Grabber (Ethan Hawke) is that he rides in a black van and uses black balloons to lure his victims. 13-year-old Finney (Mason Thames) is now the latest victim. Locked in the killer’s basement with no way out, Finney discovers that the disconnected black phone on the wall rings. The ones who are calling him are the previous victims of The Grabber and they are set to make sure that Finney survives his ordeal.
We will have to admit that "The Black Phone" won't be for everyone. Especially for those who expect extremes from their thriller or horror films. It won't be able to provide the same levels scares when compared to a full-blown supernatural flick and it doesn't really dive deep into its characters to make its criminally-rooted offerings truly worthwhile. What the film did stupendously great was tension build-up. The fear, the stress, and the anxiety that we felt throughout its 142 minute was palpably thick and not really knowing what's going to happen next had us gripping our seats more than we even anticipated. Another one of our favorite aspects of "The Black Phone" was Director Scott Derrickson's cinematography. Some scenes just transported us right smack dab in that creepy and dark basement and we felt that we were right beside Finney. Finally, Ethan Hawke delivers a memorable performance as the Grabber and brought to life the cruelty and viciousness of a serial killer. But more than Hawke, we actually found that Mason Thames stole the show and had the better acting performance amongst his peers. Overall, "The Black Phone" is a master of none but it does enough to make it an interesting, horrifying, disturbing, and refreshing supernatural crime film.
Rating: 4 reels
Why you should watch it:
- Ethan Hawke and the young Mason Thames delivered memorable and outstanding performances
- the climactic culmination was well worth the wait and the build up
Why you shouldn't watch it:
- it's not as terrifying or at the same level of a very good horror film
- the narrative had some fluff that could have been trimmed down further
The Black Phone Movie Review: Terrifyingly Refreshing
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