From ‘Panic’ to ‘Mr. Harrigan’: 10 movies where the phone is (almost) a character [LISTA]

In the last week, it arrived in the catalog of Netflix the long one The Telephone of Mr. Harriganstarring the actor Jaeden Martellin It: The Thing. Written and directed by John Lee Hancockthe production mixes drama, suspense and supernatural in a thought-provoking plot.

In the film, it all begins in a small New England town, with the young Craig performing some housework for the mysterious and reclusive Mr. Harrigan. lived by Donald Sutherlandthe elderly billionaire is averse to modern technologies, but ends up becoming friends with the teenager and both start talking on a smartphone.

Everything changes, however, when Mr. Harrigan dies and “their mysterious connection refuses to end,” according to the film’s synopsis. Craig suffers from the loss of a friend and, victim of bullying at school, keeps calling the Mr. Harrigan. To the young man’s surprise, the device buried next to the old man starts to answer calls.

It turns out that The Telephone of Mr. Harrigan is not the first production to create a narrative in which a phone also functions, in a way, as a character. With that in mind, we’ve separated 10 movies in which the phone is a villain, or a sidekick. Check out:

1. Panic (1996 – 2022)

In the classic 1996 franchise, the main villain is, of course, the horror movie fanatic serial killer who wears a terrifying white mask. But what would the narrative of the feature be if the killer didn’t call his victims first? That way, those who watch the movie can even feel a chill when they see and hear the next phone ringing on the big screen.

2. Hush (2016)

the whole plot of hushtakes place in a cabin in the woods, where he lives Madison Young, a young writer who lost her hearing as a child. One day, her own cell phone becomes a villain when a masked man enters her house, steals the device, and begins a sequence of mind games by sending pictures of her to the writer’s computer.

3. Black Telephone (2022)

An adaptation of the 2004 short story written by Joe Hillthe new feature from Universal narrates the kidnapping of the little one Finney Shaw (Mason Thames). Arrested and held captive by a man wearing a terrifying mask, the boy begins to communicate, via a black phone, with his kidnapper’s other victims.

4. By A Thread (2002)

played by Colin Farrellthe publicist Stu Shepard hears a pay phone ringing while walking through the streets of New York. The man answers the device and then finds himself cornered in a phone booth, since, on the other end of the line, a serial killer claims to be armed with a rifle and promises to shoot the protagonist if he leaves the booth.

5. The Call (2002)

Another horror movie classic, The call it has two inanimate villains: a videotape and the telephone – which, when answered, projects a ghostly voice that announces the interlocutor’s death in “seven days”. Starred by Naomi Wattsis one of the first features that people remember when it comes to a macabre bond.

6. Emergency Call (2013)

Starred by Halle Berry, the film chronicles the frustration of a police emergency operator who is unable to save a little girl from a serial killer. Some time later, she receives a call from another young woman, who is being kidnapped by the same man.

7. Explosive Direction (2018)

In this German plot, it all starts when Karl Brendt (Wotan Wilke Mohring) receives a call while taking her children to school. On the other end of the line, a stranger claims that he planted bombs in the car and that, in exchange for the survival of the man and the two children, he wants a millionaire amount of money.

8. Ambush (2002)

Next to a hot dog cart in the middle of a square, the businesswoman Liberty Wallace she must race against time to free herself from the sights of a sniper who, on the phone, says he will kill her. What she doesn’t know, however, is that the connection is far more personal than she realizes — and involves a tragedy caused, in a way, by her work.

9. The Connection (2020)

In this South Korean film, young women Kim Seo-yeon and Oh Young-sook talk on the phone in two different years: one in 2019 and the other in 1999, respectively. Discovering that they live in the same house, but in different time periods, the young women begin to play with the past and the present, sharing information that changes their lives constantly – until one of them becomes a serial killer.

10. Cell Phone: A Cry for Help (2004)

the day of Ryan (Chris Evans), a college student, is completely changed when he receives an unexpected call. On the other end of the line, the teacher Jessica Martin (Kim Basinger) asks the young man for help, claiming to have been kidnapped by Ethan (Jason Statham), a cruel criminal. No time to think, Ryan you have to help the woman, who is using a broken phone and has no one else to call.

Bonus: Seeking (2018)

Fully set on a computer screen, Seeking outtells the story of a father (John Cho) in the constant search for his missing daughter (Michelle La). In search of clues about the young woman’s whereabouts, the man makes several calls – through his notebook and cell phone – to try to solve the terrible mystery.