Phone

Phone

Year: 2002

Runtime: 103 mins

Language: Korean

Director: Ahn Byeong-ki

ThrillerHorrorMysteryHorror

Shortly after acquiring a new mobile, a woman notices bizarre occurrences surrounding the device. As she digs deeper, she learns that every previous owner of her phone number met an untimely, mysterious death, leaving her to confront the chilling pattern behind the calls.

Tense
Unclear ending
Emotionally heavy
High intensity
Steady pacing
Simple story

Warning: spoilers below!

Haven’t seen Phone yet? This summary contains major spoilers. Bookmark the page, watch the movie, and come back for the full breakdown. If you're ready, scroll on and relive the story!

Timeline & Setting – Phone (2002)

Explore the full timeline and setting of Phone (2002). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

Set in contemporary South Korea, the drama uses modern technology like cell phones, diaries and social dynamics to drive the mystery. The events unfold over a few tense days as Ji-won pursues answers and confronts the haunting past. The Moonlight Sonata motif threads through memories, revealing relationships and motivations.

Location

Bangbae-dong, Seoul, South Korea

The story centers on a quiet Bangbae-dong house in Seoul where Ji-won hides from threats and unravels Jin-hee's disappearance. The neighborhood is portrayed as a normal residential district that becomes a crucible for dark family secrets. Most pivotal scenes unfold inside the house, with occasional movements to Jin-hee's family home and the seaside where the final phone call rings.

📍 Urban setting 🏠 Family home

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 11:58

Main Characters – Phone (2002)

Meet the key characters of Phone (2002), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Ji-won (Ha Ji-won)

A determined journalist who relocates to a new, empty house to escape threatening calls after exposing a pedophilia scandal. She uncovers Jin-hee's diary and, through it, discovers that Young-ju is her biological daughter. She relentlessly pursues the truth and fights to protect the young girl, even as danger closes in and the supernatural hints intensify.

🕵️ Investigation 💪 Determination 👩‍💼 Journalist

Ho-jung

Ji-won's infertile sister who resents Jin-hee and the bond Ji-won secretly shares with Young-ju. She confronts the Jin-hee affair, pushes Jin-hee to her death, and attempts to stage events to protect her own family, including a staged suicide for Chang-hoon.

💔 Jealousy 🗝️ Secrets 🎭 Deception

Chang-hoon

Ho-jung's husband who had an affair with Jin-hee and is the biological father of Young-ju. He dies in a later act of deception as Ho-jung attempts to frame him for the crimes, ultimately ending his life in a bathtub.

💔 Infidelity 🕵️‍♂️ Cover-up

Jin-hee

The missing woman whose diary unlocks the mystery; she was pregnant with Chang-hoon's child and carried an intense but doomed love for her lover. Her body is hidden in a wall, and she returns as a vengeful ghost to reveal the truth.

💔 Forbidden love 🕵️‍♀️ Mystery 💀 Tragedy

Young-ju

Ho-jung's daughter, who becomes the focus of the haunting as Jin-hee's spirit possesses her. She is hospitalized after the terrifying events, and her true parentage is central to the film's emotional conflicts.

👶 Child 👻 Possession

Jin-hee's Mother

Jin-hee's mother confronts the unfolding tragedy and the secrets kept within the family, providing a voice of grief, memory, and a link to Jin-hee's past.

👪 Family 🕊️ Grief

Detective Kim

A detective involved in the investigation surrounding Jin-hee's disappearance and the complex family web. He pieces together the diary, the relationships, and the hidden motives.

🕵️ Crime 🧭 Investigation

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 11:58

Major Themes – Phone (2002)

Explore the central themes of Phone (2002), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

🔪 Obsession and Revenge

Jin-hee's fixation on an older lover and Ho-jung's fierce protectiveness of her own status spark a deadly confrontation. The affair between Jin-hee and Chang-hoon becomes the catalyst for betrayal, murder, and a plan to frame others. The film shows how jealousy fuels violence and how secrets circle back with deadly consequences. The haunting phone and diary push the characters toward a violent reckoning.

👻 Haunting and Guilt

Jin-hee's ghost haunts Ji-won and others, turning unresolved guilt into a present danger. The haunting motive intersects with the detective work and the mounting tension within the household. Sang-mi's perception of the haunting deepens the sense that the past cannot stay buried. The ghost ultimately acts as retribution for the wronged woman and those complicit in her disappearance.

👶 Motherhood and Secrets

The film centers on motherhood in a web of secrecy: Ji-won is revealed to be Young-ju's biological mother, conceived via Ji-won's donated egg to Ho-jung. The revelation complicates loyalties and highlights the emotional costs of family secrets. Ho-jung's infertility and the long-buried truth about Young-ju drive the conflict and shape the characters' choices. The maternal bonds are tested as the truth finally comes to light.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 11:58

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Cursed Tech Thrillers like Phone

Unearthing the deadly secret behind a haunted piece of modern technology.If you liked the terrifying mystery of a cursed object in 'Phone', you'll find similar dread in these movies. This thread gathers stories where characters investigate the deadly past of haunted technology, blending supernatural horror with a tense, investigative thriller structure.

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Narrative Summary

Stories in this thread typically begin with the protagonist acquiring or encountering a seemingly normal technological object, only to discover it is linked to a series of tragic events. The plot is driven by a linear investigation, as they piece together clues from the past to understand the rules of the curse and find a way to survive it.

Why These Movies?

These movies are grouped together because they share a unique blend of supernatural horror and investigative mystery, centered on a cursed object. They create a specific kind of paranoid, urgent tension where the threat is both mysterious and intimately tied to modern life.

Thrillers about Inescapable Fate like Phone

Confronting a terrifying pattern of death that seems inevitable.For viewers who enjoyed the chilling pattern of deaths in 'Phone', this thread features movies with a similar feeling of unavoidable doom. These stories focus on characters who uncover a grim destiny they must desperately try to escape, creating a heavy, suspenseful mood.

fearfulclaustrophobicominousanxiousfated doomdesperate survivalchilling patternsupernatural threat

Narrative Summary

The narrative pattern involves the protagonist learning they are the next target in a chain of unfortunate events. The journey is one of escalating fear and desperation, as they attempt to defy a seemingly supernatural or predestined outcome, often by uncovering a hidden truth from the past.

Why These Movies?

These films are united by their core theme of confronting an inescapable fate, which generates a unique and intense form of suspense. The shared emotional experience is one of claustrophobic dread and a race against a clock that seems to have already run out.

Unlock the Full Story of Phone

Don't stop at just watching — explore Phone in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what Phone is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.

Phone Summary

Read a complete plot summary of Phone, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.

Phone Summary

Phone Timeline

Track the full timeline of Phone with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

Phone Timeline

More About Phone

Visit What's After the Movie to explore more about Phone: box office results, cast and crew info, production details, post-credit scenes, and external links — all in one place for movie fans and researchers.

More About Phone

Explore More About Movie Phone

Phone (2002) Plot Summary & Movie Recap

Phone (2002) Scene-by-Scene Movie Timeline

Phone (2002) Spoiler-Free Summary & Key Flow