The Black Phone

Starring: Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Ethan Hawke, Jeremy Davies, E Roger Mitchell, Troy Rudeseal, James Ransone

Director: Scott Derrickson

Based on the short story "The Black Phone" by Joe Hill

As their Denver suburb tries to recover from a rash of child kidnappings by a man known only as "The Grabber," (Hawke), Finney (Thames) tries to navigate bullies at school as well as his abusive, alcoholic father Terrence (Davies). Always at Finney's side and doing all she can to help is his younger sister Gwen (McGraw), whose dreams may hold clues to The Grabber's crimes. Soon, Finney finds himself a victim of The Grabber and is kept in a soundproof basement with only a black phone on the wall. Despite The Grabber's claim that it doesn't work, Finney soon begins to receive calls from The Grabber's previous victims who want to help Finney escape the same fate that befell them. As Finney tries to escape, Gwen attempts to help the police (Mitchell, Rudeseal) and use her dreams to find Finney. Will Finney be saved or is he set to join the voices of the other victims on The Black Phone?

Scott Derrickson burst onto the horror scene in 2005 with the underrated The Exorcism of Emily Rose but many would claim his magnum opus is 2012's horror classic Sinister. While he left the horror scene to work with Marvel, his keen eye for the horror genre was still present and left many wondering when he would fully return to the genre. After leaving Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness over creative differences, he promptly returned to his roots and reunited with his Sinister star Ethan Hawke.

The result is not only a worthwhile addition to the horror genre but also a thoughtful and well-made coming of age story. While the coming of age story within horror has been done often lately thanks to It and It: Chapter II, The Black Phone manages to do something new that helps it stand on its own. The movie goes out of its way to bring us into Finney and Gwen's world (including a harrowing scene of child abuse) that have us rooting for them from the beginning. Finney especially has our sympathies because we end up seeing a lot of ourselves in him and just want him to stand up for himself.

While there are ghosts in the story, they aren't used in the way many horror fans might be expecting. Any time Finney communicates with them through the phone, their bloodied figures are present in the room with their voice modulated to sound like they are coming from the phone. It's horrific and effective in the way Derrickson subverts the genre expectation and uses the ghostly apparitions to advance the plot rather than for jump scares.

Hawke's Grabber is absolutely terrifying, utilizing a creepy devil mask every time he appears on screen and seemingly speaking with a seemingly new and unsettling inflection every time he appears on screen Known mostly for playing the good/nice guy, this is definitely a departure for Hawke that will surprise many. Derrickson and his co-writer C. Robert Cargill make the decision to use him sparingly throughout the film, making The Grabber more of a hypothetical presence than a physical one. This ups the terror as we never know when he will actually appear. And the mask that Hawke wears is just plain creepy, never allowing us to fully see The Grabber's face, and has an interchangeable element that changes every time Hawke appears. It's a bold choice for a film to seemingly not utilize Hawke's name as often as possible but it works wonders. Derrickson and Cargill also choose to never give us any comprehensive backstory on the Grabber, leaving us with the knowledge that he kidnaps kids who never reappear. While that may be frustrating to some, it is a masterful stroke of restraint and the movie is all the better for it.

The real stars of the show are young Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw. They both capture the spirit of the kids they are portraying and humanize them, constantly talking back or fighting back against not only the bullies but also people in authority. McGraw in particular has a humorous scene where she crassly mouths off to the two police detectives. Thames also very much sells Finney's transformation from a timid kid to the one who will fight for his survival.

If I had one gripe (and it's a minor one), it would be that there isn't more attention on the case from the police. I think it was mentioned that even before Finney was taken the Grabber took five kids and they were never seen again. Wouldn't that make national news or force the FBI to step in or something? The movie does take place in the late 70's but I would have expected something bigger to have happened by this point investigation-wise? There is also a character played by James Ransone that feels very shoehorned into the plot in a way that I won't spoil here. I get what it was going for but it doesn't quite work.

Definitely check out this thrilling coming of age horror gem.

Grade: A-