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> THE CELL (2000)
The Cell is visually amazing, however, aside from the eye candy the film lacks in several major elements like suspense and mystery.

Directed by: Tarsem Singh

Written by: Mark Protosevich

Genre: Thriller

Starring: Jennifer Lopez, Vincent D'Onfrio & Vince Vaughn

Rating: 6 out of 10

I became quite intrigued by this film from the first time I saw the trailer. Some of my favorite films have been 'psychotic thrillers' like Silence of the Lambs and Se7en. Films which, if done correctly, allow the audience to try and figure out the who the killer is, how he went about orchestrating his murders, and lastly, why he committed these crimes. When the end of the film comes about there is often a significant event that shocks and surprises you, and chances are you never saw it coming. In The Cell, some of these crucial elements are missing, and in the end, this leaves the film with no substance other than amazing visuals.

The film opens with some great cinematography of Jennifer Lopez and a young boy in a dessert. We later learn that Lopez is actually "living" in the boy's subconscious. This is all made possible by a new technology which includes the host, and up to two others who can channel into the host's mind. He is lost to the outside world, trapped in a coma, and the new technology is used in an attempt to free the boy's mind and hopefully bring him back to reality. These scenes are followed by the dead giveaway of several of the elements I mentioned earlier. We are shown who (Vincent D'Onofrio) the murderer is and how he murdered his victims. He is then caught by the FBI in the first 30-45 minutes of the film. So what is left to show? Of course, this is all a great setup for Lopez to travel into the mind of the killer and attempt to determine the location of his most recent soon-to-be victim. The sequences are very creative and oftentimes a bit too graphic for some viewers, but overall they are a nice mind trip; making this all a perfect setup for director Singh to do what he does best -- direct music videos.

The Cell seems to focus almost entirely on these visual aspects, this is both good and bad. Visually, The Cell is easily one of the most amazing films I have ever seen. I would recommend it for this reason alone, however, there really is not much more substance to the film than these alternate world visual sequences. Singh creates the ultimate music video and Jennifer Lopez its perfect diva, however, the rest of the film (outside of the killer's world) seems boring and quite dull. Without giving too much away, the real kicker is when Vince Vaughn finds the killer's lair from a source that was somehow totally overlooked earlier in the film. Making it was a total waste (in the practical sense) to even go into the madman's mind at all. So when you stop to think about it, this film was a clever outlet to show us the inside of a killer's mind, and little else. I am a big fan of both Jennifer Lopez and Vince Vaughn. I have not seen a film by either actor in which I have not enjoyed their performances. It is easy to see why they agreed to do this film; too bad it had nothing to back up all of its flair.

What I liked: Quite a pleasure visually. Some extraordinarily creative sequences. The film is beautiful, at its darkest and in its brightest sequences.

What I didn't like: Not much of a story outside of the joy rides in the killer's mind.

(John C. Lyons, Film Critic)