The Cell (2000)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Tarsem Singh

Writer (WGA):

Mark Protosevich (written by)

Release Date:

18 August 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

This Summer... Enter The Mind Of A Killer

Plot:

A psychotherapist journeys inside a comatose serial killer in the hopes of saving his latest victim.

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Race Against Time | FBI | Coma | Mind Game

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 18 nominations

Cast

Jennifer Lopez	...	Catherine Deane
Colton James	...	Edward Baines
Dylan Baker	...	Henry West
Marianne Jean-Baptiste	...	Dr. Miriam Kent
Gerry Becker	...	Dr. Barry Cooperman
Musetta Vander	...	Ella Baines
Patrick Bauchau	...	Lucien Baines
Vincent D'Onofrio	...	Carl Stargher
Catherine Sutherland	...	Anne Marie Vicksey
Vince Vaughn	...	Peter Novak
James Gammon	...	Teddy Lee
Jake Weber	...	Gordon Ramsey
Dean Norris	...	Cole
Tara Subkoff	...	Julia Hickson
Lauri Johnson	...	Mrs. Hickson

MPAA:

Rated R for bizarre violence and sexual images, nudity and language.

Runtime:

107 min | Germany:109 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Brazil:16 | Malaysia:18PL (uncut version) | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Argentina:18 | Australia:MA (original rating) | Australia:R (director's cut) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:16+ (Québec) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Chile:18 | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:IIB | Hungary:18 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 (video rating) | New Zealand:R18 (director's cut) | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R (certificate #37605) | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating) | Singapore:R(A)

Filming Locations:

Bakersfield, California, USA

Company:

Avery Pix

Trivia:

The animated film that Catherine watches early in the film is 'La planète sauvage' 1973.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Though "Whalen's Infraction," a brain disorder which is said to have accelerated Stargher's schizophrenia was made up for the movie, an infraction actually refers to an incomplete bone fraction and affects bony tissues, not the brain. Cerebral infarction {"infarct" instead of "infract"), or tissue death due to lack of blood flow, does occur in the brain, but this is said to cause schizophrenia-like symptoms and would not cause or affect schizophrenia itself.

Quotes:

Catharine Deane: Hey you.
[pets young Carl's horse]
Catharine Deane: You know, I know another little boy who has a horse. His name's Edward. The boy, not the horse.

Movie Connections:

References Spellbound (1945)

Soundtrack:

YOU CAN FIND THE FEELING

Daring to be different.

"The Cell" is an exotic masterpiece, a dizzying trip into not only the vast mind of a serial killer, but also into one of a very talented director. This is conclusive evidence of what can be achieved if human beings unleash their uninhibited imaginations. This is boldness at work, pushing aside thoughts to fall into formulas and cliches and creating something truly magnificent. This is the best movie of the year to date.

I've read numerous complaints about this film, anywhere from all style and no substance to poorly cast characters and bad acting. To negatively criticize this film is to miss the point. This movie may be a landmark, a tradition where future movies will hopefully follow. "The Cell" has just opened the door to another world of imagination. So can we slam the door in its face and tell it and its director Tarsem Singh that we don't want any more? Personally, I would more than welcome another movie by Tarsem, and would love to see someone try to challenge him.

We've all heard talk about going inside the mind of a serial killer, and yes, I do agree that the "genre" is a bit overworked. The 90s were full of movies trying to depict what makes serial killers tick; some of them worked, but most failed. But "The Cell" does not blaze down the same trail, we are given a new twist, we are physically transported into the mind and presented with nothing less than a fascinating journey of the most mysterious subject matter ever studied.

I like how the movie does not bog us down with too much scientific jargon trying to explain how Jennifer Lopez actually gets to enter the brain of another. Instead, she just lies down on a laboratory table and is wrapped with what looks like really long Twizzlers and jaunted into another entity. "The Cell" wants to let you "see" what it's all about and not "how" it's all about, and I guess that's what some people don't like. True, I do like explanations with my movies, but when a movie ventures onto new ground you must let it do what it desires and simply take it in.

I noticed how the film was very dark when it showed reality, maybe to contrast the bright visuals when inside the brain of another. Nonetheless, the set design was simply astonishing. I wouldn't be surprised if this film took home a few Oscars in cinematography, best costumes, best director and the like. If it were up to me it'd at least get nominated for best picture.

I've noticed that I've kind of been repeating myself. Not because there's nothing else to say, but because I can't stress enough how fantastic I thought "The Cell" was. If you walk into the movie with a very open mind and to have it taken over with wonders and an eye-popping feast then you are assured a good time. I guess this film was just a little too much for some people, writing it off as "weird" or "crazy". I am very much into psychology and the imagination of the human mind, so it was right down my alley. Leaving the theater, I heard one audience member say "Whoever made that movie sure did a lot of good drugs." If so, I want what he was smoking.

**** (out of 4)