Is Phone Booth scary?

Yes, properly. Phone Booth is the real thing without being an endurance test.

How gory is Phone Booth?

Light gore and strong violence.

What is Phone Booth rated, and is it OK for kids?

No. It is rated R, with real scares, strong violence and frequent strong language.

Phone Booth (2003)

Film · 1h 21m · Rated R

Crime, Thriller

A publicist answers a ringing phone in a booth, then fights for his life as a laser sight targets him.

Suspenseful and tense. A full-attention watch at full speed. Emotionally it is heavy.

Streaming on Prime Video.

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Phone Booth parents guide

Nothing past what an R promises: real scares and a jolt or two.

Scare: Properly scary; Frightening, not just tense.
Jump scares: A couple; One or two sudden jolts.
Gore: Light gore; Some blood or injury, briefly.
Violence: Strong violence; Violence is frequent or intense.
Sex and nudity: Mild; Mild means innuendo, or sex implied off screen, with no nudity.
Language: Strong; Frequent strong profanity or slurs.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is Phone Booth scary?: Yes, properly. Phone Booth is the real thing without being an endurance test.
How gory is Phone Booth?: Light gore and strong violence.
What is Phone Booth rated, and is it OK for kids?: No. It is rated R, with real scares, strong violence and frequent strong language.

What is Phone Booth about?

A slick New York publicist who picks up a ringing receiver in a phone booth is told that if he hangs up, he'll be killed... and the little red light from a laser rifle sight is proof that the caller isn't kidding.

Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)

It leaves the ending open to interpretation.