PHONE

MONDAY 27 OCTOBER AT 7:30PM UGC SHAFTESBURY AVE SCREEN 1

Mysterious and threatening phone calls seem to have the power to terrorise, possess, and even kill those who are unfortunate enough to answer. Ambitious young reporter Jiwon (Ji-won Ha) is under overwhelming pressure in response to her most recent expos». Having uncovered an underage sex scandal, she is constantly threatened by menacing hate mail, obscene phone calls, and even an ever-present stalker. Attempting to escape imminent danger, Ji-Won changes her phone number and moves house until the fervour dies down. But the peace does not last long. Ji-won starts receiving calls of a different nature: an insanely high-pitched and unbearable shriek. Frightening, but seemingly harmless. But when Ji-won visits her best friend, the phone rings again, this time to be answered by her friend's daughter, Yeong-ju (Seowoo Eun). Almost immediately, the innocent little girl transforms into a tortured soul, possessed by whatever mysterious entity is on the other end of the line.

Ji-won investigates the troubled history of the phone, uncovering the mysterious circumstances surrounding the previous owners, all of whom are presumed missing or dead, a fate that threatens to befall Ji-won and those close to her. Director Byeong-ki Ahn's smooth direction and taut pacing has created a genuinely terrifying piece of modern technological horror that transforms the benign ring of a phone into a frightening sound. NJS

Byeong-ki Ahn made his feature film debut with slasher film Gawi (2000).