Rating: 
Summary: Hard Cell
Review: When "The Cell" came out, it seemed like the critics really lambasted it, so I took their advice (whoops!) and didn't see this on the big screen. I regret this decision. This is a pretty good movie, with fantastic visuals and some amazing effects. The story is pretty basic Hollywood fare, although they manage to make the serial killer storyline not just another "Silence of the Lambs" rehash. I don't want to spoil any of it, but there are sequences of shots and images that will stick in your head for quite some time after seeing this movie. It is frightening, disturbing, disgusting, and at the same time beautifully rendered.Jennifer Lopez does a serviceable job in her role as the psychic equivalent of a social worker (?) and Vincent D'onofrio does a great job in his role as the schizophrenic serial killer. This movie is filled with interesting visual details and cues, which communicate the semi-dream state/world of the schizophrenic killer -- that may be jarring to people who expect a more linear progression of scenes (e.g., "hey, Lopez's outfit just changed...") but that's all part of it. Maybe the "anything goes" aspect of madness is what turned off the critics -- with a villain who is insane, it removes him from responsibility for his actions, and, perhaps, diminishes his villainy? Certainly, the killer is at odds with himself, and we're never really sure who his nether self truly is, although we're shown certainly why this could have happened through heart-rending scenes of abuse.
Rating: 
Summary: Journey into the mind of a madman
Review: I have to admit, when I first heard about this movie back in Mid-2000, I was only interesting in seeing it for Jennifer Lopez; when I finally saw "The Cell" in the fall of 2000, I was startled by the visuals and musical score and couldn't wait to see how it would be transferred to DVD.
In March 2001, I finally acquired a DVD player, and this was one of the first films I purchased. With a very original storyline and satisfying climax, you will want to watch it again and again. The DVD version of the film contains the usual features: feature-length commentaries, trailers, and links to DVD Rom-interactive web sites, but with a few interesting twists, a look inside the human brain and psychological profiling.
Here's a breakdown of the storyline: Child psychologist Catherine Deane (Jennifer Lopez) is a gifted social worker who can enter the minds of children (using a space-age virtual program) and work out problems in their subconscious mind. She is interrupted from her work to probe the mind of twisted serial killer Carl Stargher (played magnificently by Vincent D'Onofrio), who has fallen into a permanent coma-like state caused by a rare case of schizophrenia. Here's the twist, she must find information relating to one of his victims, and she only has less than 48 hours to do it! What follows is some of the most visually startling material ever to be seen on screen, watch as Catherine gets caught up in one thing after another, leading to a suprising end. Trust me, you will not be disappointed.
If you liked this movie, you would be good to check out Stanley Kubrick's "Clockwork Orange" and "The Shining".
Rating:
Summary: First rate movie
Review: THE CELL is a really interesting movie that will most likely shock you. Visually, it's one of the most beautiful movies I've seen, the cinematography is breathtaking. Jennifer Lopez plays a child psychologist who can enter the minds of children and help them work through their problems. She enters the mind of a serial killer (played by Vincent D'Onofrio) who has fell into a coma. She has to find information about one of his victims he has been holding in a glass cage that is filled with water every now and then. She only has 48 hours to complete this, and she encounters a truly strange messed up world inside of his head, trying to find the truth. Like I said, it's visually quite stunning and the plot was interesting too, kept me guessing and glued to the screen. Very good movie.
Rating: 
Summary: why this movie fails the way it does
Review: Ok, uninteresting stuff first: serial dement killer kidnaps and murders young women, goes comatose after being arrested by FBI and his last victim is trapped somewhere where she's doomed to die within hours. Scientist finds way to enter his mind through a device in order to find the victim. First of all I really enjoyed this movie, but I understand that it is not a good movie.
This happens many times, but most of us must place the movies we LIKE in the category of the movies that we thing are GOOD. There are of course movies that fit both categories and I understand that there are good movies that I don't like. ACTING We'll never agree when it comes to acting, (I've heard some people say that Brando sucked as Vito Corleone in The Godfather, whatever dudes). Anyways, my point is that no matter how many people believe that one particular performance was good, you will always find someone who thinks it was bad, and the other around. Lopez: I think that given the ridiculous material about the plot of the movie, Lopez managed to do a fair job, and I support this by saying that at times I forgot that Lopez was a singer and I could truly see her as a scientist, but only at times. She does look good in this sinister movie, which kinda helps swallow some of the images! Vaughn: He doesn't have as much screen time as Lopez, so his performance is not that important, he plays the FBI agent in an elegant way, certainly not giving his best performance. He doesn't add anything to the movie, but it is nice to have him around. D'Onofrio: I don't like his characters, he might be a good actor, but his characters are so creepy that I don't sympathize with him (in particular in this movie and in Full Metal Jacket). Here, he's creepy and scary as he should be... CINEMATOGRAPHY In order to write about the dreams of sick killer, you have to be kinda sick. This cinematography is fully computer generated, and it is sinister, dark, cruel and bizarre. Sometimes it becomes so obscene that you feel like grinning at the stupidity of what is happening... However if you have watched the whole movie it's because there is a bit of voyeurism in you, there is a macabre feeling that makes you want to know how a sick mind works.
The images are eye candy, they're rich in colors, the angles and shots are horrible (from a music video director!), but then minus by minus is plus, so it works! SCRIPT Nothing special at all, sometimes actors spit their lines without too much enthusiasm, it really is not worth any attention. OVERVIEW I liked it because I like to be shocked. But it fails (or does a poor job) in several aspects, that's why it's not a good movie. The main theme is taken from "The Silence of the Lambs", but the idea is interesting, even if copied. If it had done in a more perfectionist way, it could have been a much better movie.
Rating:
Summary: Style doesn't triumph over substance--but what style!
Review: The Cell is so visually and aurally overwhelming that it is easy to overlook the downside of the picture. First, I'd like to note the great things about the DVD: stunning picture; a beautifully reproduced Dolby soundtrack, which does full justice to Howard Shore's brilliant muscial score; a load of extra features, the kind that one has to come to expect from the "New Line Platinum Series" of DVD's. Now to the great things about the movie: frankly I'm not sure. It's a puzzling experience. Jennifer Lopez does a very fine job, Vince Vaughn is Vince Vaughn, and Vincent D'Onofrio is brilliant (as always). But the script, what there is of it, is pretty much crap--remove the dream sequences, and it's a mediocre serial killer plot, with a pretty predictable resolution. In addition, some very serious scenes of child abuse are not treated with the kind of sensitivity they deserve. There is considerable lingering on perverse images. Some viewers can argue quite correctly that the dream sequences should be the kind of perverse images that Director Tarsem Singh creates, given that they occur insider the head of a very disturbed person. I guess, to a certain extent, I'm basing my views on this issue as a result of listening to Singh's commentary, where he makes it clear that if he had his way, the images would have been a lot more perverse. Essentially, I agree with the semi-coherent commentary of Director Singh--if you buy the premise of the move as a visual, theatric, over-the-top operatic picture, then it works extremely well. If you don't buy this premise, you'll probably hate the move. For me, I ended up buying the premise, and in the terms of a visual and aural experience, the movies succeeds very well. Re DVD extras, the cut scenes are interesting, albeit including one very disturbing one. Sing's commentary alternates between incoherent, juvenile ramblings/rantings, and occasional interesting insights. Singh's commentary is probably more disturbing than the movie. The commentary of the production team is worth much more, although a tad pretentious at points--style can be substance, I guess, but not in this movie. Overall, please don't see this movie if you're looking for a brilliantly scripted, linear movie like Seven or Silence of the Lambs. This is truly a movie where substance is completely sacrificed to style, and it is, although strange, quite a trip on that level. Again, compliments to Lopez and D'Onofrio. Finally, as a demonstration of why DVD is so popular among movie buffs (picture, sound, extras), this disc has it all,
Rating: 
Summary: CELL MATES
Review: THE CELL is one of the most visually arresting movies of the recent decade, rich in kaleidoscopic, Dalian imagery, and some beautifully arranged vistas. However, all this technical wizardry can't elevate Jennifer Lopez's wimpy performance. Yes, the woman is beautiful, and she photographs better than any beautiful actress in some time. But, Jennifer seems too inhibited to let her inner beauty outshine the outside. While she smiles and cries effectively, these emotions don't seem to be coming from her. Vincent D'Onofrio, a brilliant actor, gives a typical psychotic performance, but it is mind-numbing all the same; Vince Vaughn seems to be giving his audition for Norman Bates, but in actuality, he's better in this than he was in the remake of PSYCHO. Marie Jean Baptiste, an actress of worthy merit, is lost in the script, with only Jake Weber as Vaughn's periplectic partner, giving a performance of any nuance.
THE CELL is visually delightful, but emotionally void; however, it is a trip while you're with it. Doesn't leave you feeling much afterwards, though.
Rating:
Summary: 'Dreamscape' Meets 'Seven'...
Review: If you are familiar with the Dennis Quaid 1984 science fiction thriller 'Dreamscape', 'The Cell' will seem like very familiar territory! Replacing the psychic talent Quaid utilized in the earlier film with cutting-edge 21st century technology, therapist Jennifer Lopez' 'spirit' enters a young patient's subconscious, and attempts to repair psychological damage from the inside out, by dealing with the 'demons' that lurk there. Her patient, a child in a coma from a traumatizing experience involving seals, lives in a desert world of magic, which Lopez handles with imagination and compassion. While she hasn't achieved a breakthrough, yet, her love and confidence is sufficient to keep funds for the project flowing! Meanwhile, in the 'real' world, a serial killer (Vincent D'Onofrio, in another of his string of remarkable performances) is drowning then raping young girls, and a team of FBI agents, led by Vince Vaughn, are conducting a frantic manhunt, as yet another girl has disappeared. When evidence leads to the killer, they discover him in a coma, and a crisis arises; they only have 40 hours to discover the whereabouts of the latest victim, before the cell she is imprisoned in fills with water, and she drowns! There is only one avenue with a chance of success, and soon Lopez finds herself in the mind of a madman! This film is a visual 'trip', full of Dali-esque imagery, and space/time distortions. While the plot twists are predictable (one wishes the imagination shown in the visual effects had been carried into the script, as well!) the story will keep your attention, and Lopez proves that she can move from erotic goddess to Madonna in the same film, convincingly! If you want a really fascinating double feature, buy 'Dreamscape' AND 'The Cell', and compare the two films! But be careful...watching the two films in tandem may give you some VERY unsettling dreams!
Rating:
Summary: Great visuals, thin story
Review: This is, indeed, a very fantastic film if you rate films merely by their visual merits. And it deserves serious praise for it's visual style. This movie is great to look at. And what makes it more remarkable is that a lot of the visual effects are done in-camera, meaning they weren't done by CG experts, but by expert cameramen. The story, while interesting, was a little thin though. Another reviewer called it "edge of your seat." I would say, if you've seen your fair share of thrillers, that's an overstatement. If this DVD had no track for the script and you could appreciate it with only the sight and music, it would be a great instrument for film students and fans. As a Jennifer Lopez fan, I hate to say it, I wasn't that crazy about her here. The role just didn't fit the usually spunky type of characters she portrays. As a result, it felt like a stretch and was tough to go with. See it. Buy it, if you want to go over the visuals. Don't worship it.
Rating:
Summary: J-Lo In Wonderland...
Review: The dark, bleak inner world of serial killer Carl (Vincent D'Onofrio) Stargher's mind is a bizarre labyrinth of horror and mystery. It also holds the key to finding Carl's latest female victim, before it's too late. Psychologist, Catherine (J-Lo) Deane is part of a team that has the ability to transfer a person into the mind of another. Catherine must enter Carl's head and travel through it's dank halls and passages, in order to help the FBI find the poor girl he's stashed away in a hidden dungeon. You see, Carl puts his victims in a plexiglass tank, drowns them over the course of 40 hours, and bleaches their lifeless bodies. Unfortunately, Carl slipped into a deep, irreversible coma, just as the feds moved in on him. Now, it's up to Catherine to make contact with Carl's inner self and get the information that will save his latest prey. Catherine is both gentle and strong, as she battles the insane beast that has manifest itself in Carl's mind. She befriend's Carl's "inner child", a terrified little boy, constantly on the run and reliving past tortures at the hand of his sadistic father. Can Catherine gain the boy's trust and get him to tell what he knows, or will the beast-man get them first? An excellent psycho / supernatural chiller, THE CELL is a haunting, beautiful creep-fest! Give it a look...
Rating:
Summary: One of the worst movies this world has seen
Review: J-Lo is a good actress but this role wasn't her best. She has more talent but fails to show it in this quiet horror movie that has no taste. Bad cast, bad dirctor and a very bad movie.
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