Phone Booth Film Genre

Composition II

Media Analysis

Phone Booth Film: Genre

From the onset, it would be prudent to point out that there are various film genres. A film genre, as Grant points out, could be described as “a stylistic or thematic category for motion pictures based on similarities either in the narrative elements, aesthetic approach, or the emotional response to the film” (236). The author in this case identifies some of the main film genres as; horror, science-fiction, comedy, sports, thriller, romance, and action (Grant 237). One of the films I have had the opportunity to watch in the recent past is Phone Booth (2002). This particular film could be categorized under the thriller genre for a number of reasons.

To begin with, it should be noted that one of the key elements of a thriller, according to Moine, is high stakes (300). This could involve a desperate situation whereby something of great value is at stake. In seeking to illustrate this particular point, the author indicates that in a crime thriller where the plot revolves around a loss of a meagre $20 dollars, the excitement of viewers is not likely to be evoked (Moine 301). In the movie Phone Booth, what is at stake is the loss of human life. The villain is a sniper holding the main character hostage in a phone booth. The villain has a high-powered sniper rifle with its sights trained on the main character who finds himself in this unsettling scene after seeking to use a random phone booth to call his girlfriend. The villain makes certain demands and threatens to shoot the main character if he fails to fulfill the said demands.

The other key element of a thriller is a ticking clock (Moine 299). This could be likened to the likelihood or possibility of time running out, i.e. in relation to an approaching deadline. This is yet another crucial aspect in a thriller that keeps the audience at the edge of their seats. In the movie Phone Booth, police arrive on the scene and it is a race against time as the law enforcement officers attempt to track down the murderous villain. Soon enough, police manage to identify the high-rise building in which they believe the sniper is hiding. With the villain aware that law enforcement officers are tracking him down, he has to either make a run for it or carry out his threat.