Don’t lose sight of that title: The Black Phone.
This trailer for Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson’s upcoming horror flick shows us more of Ethan Hawke’s masked menace. Adapted by Derrickson and co-writer C. Robert Cargill from a Joe Hill short story, The Black Phone follows a serial killer who has a predilection for abducting teens and imprisoning them in a filthy room, where the only item of interest is a non-functional phone set into the wall. It’s not entirely non-functional, however.
The killer’s latest victim, Finney Shaw (Mason Thames), learns this firsthand when — as this new trailer suggests — he begins to commune with the spirits of former victims. By the look of things here, those spirits are willing helpers who want to see Finney escape. On the outside, we also see how Finney’s sister Gwen (Madeleine McGaw) is experiencing similarly supernatural occurrences.
What does it all mean? Why is that phone so important? A good trailer gives you a sense of what’s going on without answering any truly key questions. I walked away feeling like this is absolutely a good trailer. All questions will be answered soon enough, though.
The Black Phone arrives in theaters on June 24.
