The scares — both psychological and surprising — are well played and effective.
Set in 1978, The Black Phone transports us to suburban Denver, Colorado as a series of child abductions take place. Known as The Grabber, the kidnapper (and presumably serial killer) has the police stumped as they are unable to find him or his victims. Of course, students at the local high school are oddly fascinated by the crimes and yet scared that any one of them might be the next victim.
Finney Blake (Mason Thames,) a smart but shy kid, lives with his younger sister, Gwen (Madeleine McGraw,) and their alcoholic and abusive father (Jeremy Davies.) Finney and Gwen share a strong bond due the treatment they receive from their dad. Frequently bullied at school, Finney finds allies in both his sister and his friend, Robin (Miguel Cazarez Mora.) Robin, who is a skilled fighter, tells Finney that one day he will have to stand up for himself.
When Finney is abducted by The Grabber, the titular black phone comes into play. In the soundproof basement where The Grabber stashes Finney, there is an old black phone on the wall. Although disconnected, the phone rings. When Finney answers, he hears the voices of The Grabber’s previous abductees. They give him clues on how he might escape. But are the voices real? Or is The Grabber just playing a cruel game with his latest victim?
Scott Derrickson, the director of Sinister and Doctor Strange, helms The Black Phone, which is based on a 2004 short story by Joe Hill. I can’t comment on the original story but the screenplay by Derrickson and Sinister collaborator, C. Robert Cargill, feels authentic in its recreation of the 1970s. Kids travel alone on their bikes or walk to friends’ houses and to school with little adult supervision. Having grown up in the 1970s, I remember walking to school alone when I was as young as six years old. (Although we did have school-appointed student crossing guards at busy intersections to provide the bare minimum of oversight.) It was a time that kids relied on the simple advice of their parents for survival: “Don’t talk to strangers.”
The realistic stranger danger provides The Black Phone with a grounded source of dread. The possibly supernatural aspects of Finney speaking with the dead and Gwen’s clue-filled dreams give the film some wiggle room to serve up the unexpected jump scare. While I’m not a fan of cheap scares, The Black Phone never plays dirty. The scares — both psychological and surprising — are well-played and effective.
Ethan Hawke, in his first villainous role as The Grabber, receives top-billing and, while his performance is appropriately menacing, he’s not the true star. Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw are stellar as the Blake siblings. Thames, especially, as he’s frequently on-screen alone trying to work out how to escape from his abductor. I see great things ahead for him.
Admittedly, I had low expectations for The Black Phone, but I have to give it credit for being a thoroughly entertaining and engrossing thriller. It’s one of the year’s biggest surprises.
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
