Dean Whitmore’s Death in Mr. Harrigan’s Phone: Is Dean Killed by Harrigan?

Dean Whitmore’s Death in Mr. Harrigan’s Phone: Is Dean Killed by Harrigan?

The adaptation of Stephen King’s titular story from his collection “If It Bleeds” is titled “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone.” John Lee Hancock wrote and directed the Netflix horror movie. It centres on Craig, an adolescent with a unique connection to businessman Mr. Harrigan. But even after Mr. Harrigan passes away from old age, Craig keeps in touch with him via his phone because he thinks it contains the businessman’s ghostly presence.

Craig’s phone conversations soon endanger other people’s lives in a deadly way. Dean Whitmore is one person who is particularly affected by the phone’s peculiar abilities. Viewers are left wondering about Dean’s cause of death after he is mysteriously discovered dead. If you’re trying to find out additional information regarding Dean Whitmore’s passing in “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone.” Spoilers follow!

 

Mr. Harrigan’s Phone
Mr. Harrigan’s Phone

 

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Why Does Dean Whitmore Passed Away?

In the last scene of “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone,” Dean Whitmore makes an appearance. He is a Waltham, Massachusetts native who is a college student who is circling New Hampshire. Craig is attending college and working toward his goal of being a writer in the meantime. Ms. Hart, Craig’s favourite instructor, recently got engaged and is coming home after a weekend getaway with the town of Chester. Dean consumes alcohol while operating a vehicle and becomes inebriated. Ms. Hart is killed when his automobile collides with those of her fiancé and Ms. Hart.

Dean is the target of a lawsuit, and a judge will determine whether or not he contributed to the collision. The judge condemns Dean to two years in prison but offers to reduce the term if Dean accepts a six-month alcohol rehab programme. It is obvious that Dean’s family utilised their influence and position to prevent him from going to jail. Craig is shocked that Ms. Hart’s killer was not apprehended as a result. Dean is discovered dead at the rehab centre, but the police withhold the circumstances of his death. When Craig visits the rehab facility, he learns that Dean’s death was caused by ingesting shampoo.

Based on Stephen King’s novella of the same name from the collection If It Bleeds, John Lee Hancock created the American horror movie Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, which he also wrote and directed. Donald Sutherland, Jaeden Martell, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Joe Tippett, Cyrus Arnold, and Carl Zohan all appear in the movie.

Netflix aired Mr. Harrigan’s Phone

The elderly Mr. Harrigan makes friends with a boy named Craig, who also offers him a cell phone. When Mr. Harrigan passes away, Craig starts calling his old number to complain about the people who are torturing him. However, when he does so, Mr. Harrigan’s ghost strikes back at his young friend from beyond the dead.

Cast of Mr. Harrigan’s Phone

As Craig, Jaeden Martell
Mr. Harrigan is played by Donald Sutherland.
As Ms. Hart, Kirby Howell-Baptiste
Craig’s father Joe Tippett and Kenny Yankovich (Cyrus Arnold)
Funeral Attendant, Carl Zohan
Iván Amaro Bullón as a deputy sheriff
Popular High School Student Josie Axelson Thomas Francis Murphy’s character, Pete, Colin O’Brien’s character, Young Craig
Young Margie played by Caitlin Shorey
Clerk Alex Bartner
As Edna Grogan, Peggy J. Scott
Wallstreet #1 is Gregory Jensen.
Deane Whitmore, played by Daniel Reece
Production
The rights to “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone,” a movie that will be written and directed by John Lee Hancock and produced by Blumhouse Productions and Ryan Murphy, were purchased by Netflix in July 2020.

Donald Sutherland, Jaeden Martell, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, and Joe Tippett all joined the cast in October 2021. [4] On October 20, 2021, principal photography commenced in Connecticut and ended on December 22, 2021. [2]

Release

Netflix released the movie on October 5, 2022.

Critical Acclaim

33% of the 18 reviews from critics on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes are favourable, with an overall rating of 5.3/10.

“Viewers might expect a horror-thriller, but this is more of a coming-of-age narrative about the risks of retribution and a reflection on how we’ve evolved with the emergence of the smartphone,” said Brian Costello, who awarded it a 4/5 rating in Common Sense Media.

Frank Scheck wrote in The Hollywood Reporter that “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, although its intriguing premise, has the vital ingredient to make it truly unforgettable; it is simply not that scary.”

Bill Goodykoontz awarded it a 4/5 rating in the Arizona Republic and stated that “The best portions of this tale, like the greatest King works, are not the terror components (of which there are few). The time spent getting to know the characters.” It received a 2/5 rating on CinemaBlend from Eric Eisenberg, who described it as “a slow and sluggish flick that attempts to be both a coming-of-age drama and a supernatural horror thriller, but it ultimately fails to make an emotional impact with either genre.”

Even though Stephen King is regarded as the king of scares, his horror novels are rooted on intensely personal human relationships. King’s most cherished tales, from timeless favourites like Carrie to recent hits like Outsider, give us the chills to the bone because they deal with actual suffering, social rejection, and loneliness. If the terrifying visions King conjures weren’t actual demons that hunt us all every day, they wouldn’t have the same impact on us. King puts horror on hold in order to tell a coming-of-age tale about morality and camaraderie in Mr. Harrigan’s Phone. Even though Mr. Harrigan’s Phone still contains a few supernatural elements, the focus of the book is on Craig, the protagonist, and his internal world.

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Video Collider of the Day

A cinematic version of Mr. Harrigan’s Phone faces several significant obstacles due to the book’s basic nature. The novella Mr. Harrigan’s Phone is a slow-burner with no substantial reward, despite being a remarkable story that makes us confront the unpleasant things we occasionally wish for other people. As a result, Mr. Harrigan’s Phone isn’t exactly cinematic, especially for viewers seeking a fresh terrifying experience. Craig’s narrative has enough suspense, but Mr. Harrigan’s Phone still goes more toward drama than horror. And this awkward situation is exactly where Netflix’s version of the novella finds itself. This is so because the Netflix film is an exact replication of the original work, notwithstanding its flaws. And while though John Lee Hancock, the film’s writer and director, is an accomplished director, we can’t help but feel that some of the magic was lost in the process of turning the written book into a movie.

Mr. Harrigan’s Phone Review

Jaeden Martell plays Craig in Donald Sutherland’s Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, a Netflix original film about a young boy who is paid three times per week to read aloud books to a reclusive billionaire named Mr. Harrigan. Mr. Harrigan hires Craig as a service since, given his advanced age, he can no longer rely on his sight to read. Martell, who is already well-versed in the horror genre thanks to It and The Lodge, is adept at capturing the bewilderment and ambition that characterise adolescence. Regarding Sutherland, his portrayal of Mr. Harrigan is the ideal representation of a ruthless businessman—a man who won’t think twice about destroying others in order to achieve his goals. Mr. Harrigan’s Phone spends about an hour examining the connection between these two individuals and how a serendipitous encounter leads to an odd friendship.

When Mr. Harrigan’s Phone allows its performers to exercise their dramatic chops to craft a moving tale of new family, it is at its best. In addition, the film is very successful in revealing the complicated bonds we create with technology once the titular phone is introduced and Craig starts to educate Mr. Harrigan about its wonders. Smartphones are amazing instruments for communication that practically put the entire world in our hands, but they also have a tendency to monopolise our attention and keep us disconnected from the outer world. In addition, smartphones are status symbols that can recreate the norms of social interaction, particularly for teens starting high school. Mr. Harrigan’s Phone is a strange examination of a time not too long ago when smartphones were not yet indispensable daily tools. It is a slightly period piece set in the early 2000s.

 

Mr. Harrigan’s Phone
Mr. Harrigan’s Phone

 

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Is Dean Killed by Harrigan?

During Craig’s first year of high school, Mr. Harrigan passes away from a heart attack. Craig thinks he can still reach Mr. Harrigan, nevertheless, by utilising their old iPhones. As Craig demonstrated how to use the phone to Mr. Harrigan, the two became closer. Following Mr. Harrigan’s passing, Craig starts getting messages from his old phone, which leads Craig to think that Mr. Harrigan is still keeping an eye on him. Craig makes the decision to bring Dean to justice after he escapes punishment for his actions. He consequently locates his old iPhone and makes contact with Mr. Harrigan. Craig expressly requests that Mr. Harrigan execute Dean for his part in Ms. Hart’s killing during their talk.

Craig finds out about Dean’s passing a few days later from the rehab facility. Dean appeared to have killed himself by drinking shampoo while taking a shower. As a result, it is assumed that he committed suicide out of guilt about the incident. Craig is aware that Mr. Harrigan was the one who killed Dean, though. Craig earlier mistakenly told Mr. Harrigan that he didn’t like the school bully Kenny. Following the discussion, Kenny is discovered dead. Craig deludes himself into believing that Kenny’s passing was an accident, but he is aware that Mr. Harrigan had a role.

In the movie’s climax, Dean dies in a situation reminiscent of how Kenny died. It is therefore obvious that Mr. Harrigan murdered Dean at Craig’s instruction. Craig is urged by Mr. Harrigan to stop harming himself by choosing this strategy to cope with his adversaries. Craig’s assurance to Mr. Harrigan that he would ruthlessly eliminate his opponents is the source of the entire deadly deception. Craig assists Mr. Harrigan in caring for Kenny and Dean Whitmore because he is unable to do so on his own. As a result of his anger with himself for being responsible for Dean and Kenny’s deaths, Craig ultimately tosses away the phone that connected him to Mr. Harrigan.

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