10 Biggest Plot-Changing Movie Phone Calls
9. Phone Booth
Larry Cohen had well established himself as a hatchet-man and innovative screenwriter - good for an original draft he dreamed up in the shower that morning or some rewrite work on a major feature. It's a shame, then, that much of his work has gone unsung, with only die-hard fans seeking out his more obscure directorial efforts. His quirky sense of humour and knack for knocking out high-concept scripts at a rapid pace led to such cult favourites as Q: The Winged Serpent and The Stuff.
The legend is that Phone Booth was first pitched by Cohen to Alfred Hitchcock in the 60s. Hitch loved the idea of keeping a character in a phone booth for an entire film, but neither could figure out a compelling reason.
It was only after the D.C. Sniper attacks that Cohen revisited the idea, and not a moment too soon. It was the dawn of a new millennium and phone booths - particularly the classic ones that have their own glass doors - were dwindling in supply. Cohen capitalized on that, putting a fast-talking, wheeling and dealing agent Colin Farrell in the gunsight of a sniper (Kiefer Sutherland) who refuses to let him hang up.
Had Cohen or director Joel Schumacher had sat on the material just a little longer, it'd practically have to be a period piece.