MOVIES: Recap & Review …Mr. Harrington’s Phone, Streaming on Netflix
Hello and welcome to the blog!
Quote from Mr. Harrington’s Phone
“When the gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers. Oscar Wilde wrote that. We didn’t read that book. Maybe we should have.”
Hello friends, I hope you’re doing well, getting some exercise, staying hydrated, and checking in with friends and family.
So far so good, as we end this week and for me a battery of tests and visits. I’m not looking forward to going into the office next week, but I’m also staying off my feet for the time being due to some issues with my leg.
Today I’m recapping and reviewing ..Mr. Harrington’s Phone now streaming on Netflix.
I first read this story from the Stephen King novel …If It Bleeds, which is creepy in itself but it’s still pretty good in my opinion …and so it goes.
Movie: Mr. Harrington’s Phone
Streaming on: Netflix
Rated: PG-13 (Horror, Thriller, Mystery)
Directed by: John Lee Hancock
IMBD: 6/10
Run Time: 1 hr 46 min
STORY: Craig, a young boy, befriends the elderly billionaire John Harrigan. Craig then gives him a mobile phone. However, when the man dies, Craig discovers that he can communicate with his friend from the grave. (IMBD)
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THIS SUMMARY AND REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS – READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION
I didn’t get the feels reading the book but watching the movie made me tear up which was completely unexpected. I sum it up as a movie about friendship in the oddest places amongst people that are complete opposites.
Now begins the mystery of a phone placed in the pocket of a dead body and how that phone would continue to be answered by the unknown.
It’s sadness that can bring us to the loneliest of places. As a rich square-dealing man Mr. Harrington would purposefully retire to an obscure town in Maine to live out his days. However, he soon realizes that he needs help to read as his eyesight diminishes. Through the local church, he would meet a boy (Craig) and ask his father if he could read to him 3 times a week for $5 per week.,
“Films are ephemeral, while books—the good ones—are eternal, or close to it.”
In this day and time, this mere act may seem creepy because we breed such predators in this world however, this was truly innocent. By reading, Craig would gain knowledge and a love of classic literature while seeking advice from Mr. Harrington about how he dealt with bullying or adversity. Always giving a straightforward answer (which he appreciated) Craig starts to become confident and learn to handle things head-on.
One day when Craig’s when goes to Mr. Harrington’s for his reading time, the house is quiet, as he enters the library he finds that Mr. Harrington has passed away. Craig was heartbroken at this and sent Mr. Harrington a text saying how much he would miss their readings. This would be important in the story because it’s Craig that introduces Mr. Harrington to the world of the smartphone. In a twist of events, Craig wins money from a lottery scratcher (Mr. Harrington would gift these to employees on Christmas) and uses the money to give Mr. Harrington an iPhone.
“I think our phones are how we are wedded to the world. If so, it’s probably a bad marriage.”
He also understood the evilness of the phone and predicted what we all know today. With so much information coming from anywhere and everywhere how could it be real, or how anyone can do anything or fabricate information if this type of technology wasn’t rained in, Mr. Harrington was looking into the future.
After Mr. Harrington’s death, Craig keeps his iPhone, and things would take a supernatural turn when he puts that phone into Mr. Harrington’s pocket at the funeral.
Fast forward…Craig attends a dance and is beaten up by the local bully (Cyrus), getting him suspended from school for selling drugs. Craig inadvertently leaves a voicemail on Mr. Harrington‘s phone saying that he tried to take his advice and dispatch the problem right away, but it did not work.
Faced with a bully, Craig sheepishly asks how Mr. Harrigan dealt with them back in the day, to which he icily responds, “Harshly.”
Craig felt that the bullying would never stop and the abuse would continue, but the next day Cyrus turned up dead, found in the exact position as he had left Craig after he assaulted him.
Craig felt he made a terrible mistake, and how he may have unleashed something. He never understands what happened, but he moves on with his life with a generous inheritance from Mr. Harrington. He would go on to finish high school and attend Emerson University where he would fulfill his promise to Mr. Harrington to be a writer.
However, Craig is called back to his hometown when he finds out his beloved science teacher is killed by a drunk driver. This drunk driver was going to get off with a slap on the wrist by being ordered to attend a rehab center.
Craig would then pull out his old iPhone and once again leave a message for Mr. Harrington. He would regret the message shortly after he left it, and within just a few days person accused of killing his fellow science teacher was found dead in his shower.
“The 1% is burning down the world so they can stay warm”
Craig realizes that he must get rid of his old phone once and for all and can sum up any messages prior to Mr. Harrington’s phone as …” please don’t make me do this, and go on and live your life. You must cast out this evil in your hands.”
I so enjoyed this movie, not just because Stephen King, Ryan Murphy, and Jason Blum were behind it but because it was a story of friendship between two people that would have never normally existed.
I know I’ve given a lot away but I was also very cryptic so please check out Mr. Harrington’s Phone now streaming on Netflix. Also, check out the CNN article about the movie.
Well, friends thanks so much for hanging with me. If you liked what you read don’t forget to like and subscribe. Have a great day!
