Mojave Phone Booth

Mojave Phone Booth is an independently produced 2006 film directed by John Putch. The movie is based on a real phone booth in the Mojave Desert that once accepted incoming calls, but has since been removed. The film is composed of the intertwined stories of four Las Vegas people whose lives are each connected by the vandalized but functioning Mojave phone booth. An isolated structure in the desert, some 15 miles from the nearest highway and miles from any other building, the booth became an internet phenomenon in 1997. The movie portrays the stories of four fictional travelers, separately drawn to visit the booth in the hopes the phone there might suddenly ring, allowing them to randomly connect with a stranger (this type of pilgrimage was actually practiced by many people prior to the real booth being removed on May 17, 2000 by Pacific Bell). The travelers are: Beth, who is trying to resolve problems with her love-life, as well as a mysterious, recurring crime; Mary, who is considering resorting to prostitution to escape the depressing circumstances of her life; Alex, a woman who is losing her lover, Glory, to a belief she is plagued by aliens; and Richard, an alcoholic, severely depressed by being separated from his wife, who chances upon the booth after the failure of his suicide attempt.