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325 comments in total

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121 out of 170 people found the following comment useful :-
Very enjoyable, 13 September 2004
Author: belleek78 from Cuba, MO

My husband and I saw this movie last night, and were extremely pleased by it. The movie starts with a bang immediately and keeps going! We found it well written, well acted and well directed. It's suspenseful and quite thrilling. I thought the actor's characters were right on target - the self centered young man, the distraught and frantic mother, the tired cop waiting for a retirement he's not quite sure he wants, and the baddies - whooo boy! In this movie, the baddies are without any redeemable features - the kind that you yourself would like to beat the tar out of!! Speaking of beating the tar out of someone, wait until you get a dose of the lawyer - egads. The movie is fast paced with nary a dull moment. The action scenes were great, and the building of the tense moments was very well done. Drama, suspense and with a touch of comedy - what more are you looking for in a movie?

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113 out of 159 people found the following comment useful :-
An exhilarating thrill ride!, 13 September 2004

Author: lquisp from Chicago

Awesome flick! Kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. The plot twists were surprisingly convincing and I didn't have to stretch too far to suspend disbelief. It way outshone my expectations and I found myself swept right up in the action. The acting was superb and the direction kept us moving from nail-biting suspense to laughing at the stereotyped ignorant store clerks, nasty lawyers and others that are encountered at various points in the script. What a great balance of believable and amusing! We had the greatest time enjoying this film. The parts that weren't so believable were very satisfying and the parts that were believable were incredibly suspenseful. The point is, the whole thing made for a terrific package. No, you won't go home a better person for having seen this. And you won't carry the images with you or ponder great philosophies because of it. It's not a To Kill a Mockingbird of Of Mice and Men, but it is a wonderful escape from all you problems for a couple hours and you'll feel like you've been on the most exhilarating thrill ride you could find in the park! All thumbs up for this one!

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63 out of 90 people found the following comment useful :-
Highly entertaining, 15 January 2005

Author: ctomvelu from usa

A popcorn thriller that draws heavily on PHONE BOOTH for its inspiration (written by the same guy, Larry Cohen), CELLULAR take us on one heck of a ride right from the opening sequence, as a bunch of bad guys kidnap a woman (Kim Basinger), Her only contact with the outside world accidentally becomes a young man (Chris Evans) with a cell phone, hence the title. William Macy as a retiring cop (shades of FALLING DOWN!) and Jason Statham as the main bad guy (and whose name is curiously missing from the IMDb credits for this film) lend able support. A harrowing car chase forms the centerpiece of this mindless but thoroughly enjoyable action flick, just as a huge chain accident formed the heart of the director's previous FINAL DESTINATION 2. The movie remains taut throughout, but it also has deft moments of comedy, to remind us we're watching a movie. In particular, watch for the scene where Evans is in desperate need of a cell phone charger. It's hysterical.

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37 out of 57 people found the following comment useful :-
An entertaining and intense movie from beginning to end, 20 January 2005

Author: christian123

A kidnapped woman (Kim Basinger) frantically dials a random number on a broken telephone, reaching the cellular phone of a young man in a different state (Chris Evans) who begins a race against time to find and save her before the connection is lost or she is killed.

Cellular is a fast paced, exciting and entertaining movie. It is a simple film yet an interesting one. The plot isn't new or anything but the execution is pretty good. They manage to keep the audience glued to the screen and at the edge of their seats. Keep in mind though that the film is highly unrealistic. There are a few eye rolling moments and some of the scenes may be hard to buy. I didn't have any real problems with it but some other people may complain about it. The movie is also pretty predictable. It is easy to see where things are going and the inside man is also easy to figure out.

The acting is pretty good with the best being William H. Macy. He plays the cop role pretty well and he has a few funny lines. Chris Evans gives a decent performance and he is now forgiven for appearing in the Perfect Score. Kim Basinger gives an okay performance. Sometimes she was a little too weak while other times she was just average. Jessica Biel was in the movie for about 10 minutes so it's not really worth watching. Jason Statham gives a pretty convincing performance as the bad guy though sometimes he seemed a little bored. Noah Emmerich gives an awful performance as Jack. He was just reading his lines the entire time. One of the worst performances of 2004.

David R. Ellis does a good job at directing. He keeps the audience entertained and he never lets stupidity bring down the movie. If you do give the movie a shot, just ignore any plot holes. Cellular is a thriller/action movie and if you take it seriously then you will hate the movie. The film is advertised as a harmless thriller and it succeeds as one. In the end, Cellular is a "B" movie at heart and a pretty good one. It never takes itself too seriously and it never becomes dull. Rating 8/10

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18 out of 26 people found the following comment useful :-
Keeps you on your toes, 5 May 2006

Author: stepenwolfgr from United States

I happened to catch this movie during a free-preview weekend on Starz. I had never heard of it, so I did not know what to expect. For the whole duration of the movie, about 90 min., I was at the edge of my seat. The plot takes several unexpected turns and is packed with continuous action, while the characters are very believable. O.k., fine, it does not deal with deep moral issues, if you want a movie that will make you want to go out and change the world this is not it. But if you want an entertaining movie that will give you a big dose of adrenaline, will have you raise yourself from your seat, I strongly recommend it. By the way, I am not a big fun of horror teenage movies like Scream, I just don't find them believable, and find the characters shallow. The best part about this movie is that you actually feel sympathy for the victims, the plot is probable, and the action scenes do not require that the actors possess superhuman strength. At the end of the movie the only thing I could think of was "holy cow", a response I usually associate with a great roller coaster ride.

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33 out of 57 people found the following comment useful :-
A thriller worth watching for its exhilaratingly fast pace, situational humor, and Chris Evans' star-making performance., 22 January 2005
Author: Li-1

Rating: *** out of ****

Gimmicky thriller premises are a dime a dozen. Fox's 24 essentially expounds on that idea every episode without any rhythm or consistency. The real trick is executing the idea with the right panache and skill to weave it all into a fun thriller. So is David R. Ellis' Cellular worthy of Phone Booth acclaim, or is it just another Nick of Time? You just might be surprised to see it's every bit as enjoyable as the former, with only occasional hints at the pure cheese of the latter.

Young beach bum Ryan (Chris Evans) is having just another typical day of sun and fun at the beach, but his girlfriend (Jessica Biel) sees his behavior as lazy and irresponsible. To try and patch things up, he promises to run a few errands for her, but on the way, he receives a call on his cell phone from a stranger named Jessica Martin (Kim Basinger), a woman who claims she's been kidnapped and is being held in the attic of an unfamiliar house. Her call to Ryan was completely random, but the catch is, she has to stay on the line or the signal may be lost for good.

Though initially dubious of her outrageous claims, Ryan quickly comes to believe her after he overhears one of the kidnappers on the phone. Deciding to help out in any possible way he can, Ryan tries to locate her family before the kidnappers do. Unfortunately, obstacles to keeping the phone signal going present themselves at every turn, and Ryan finds he must go through some extreme measures to keep Jessica on the line.

It's these obstacles that make up at least half the fun of watching Cellular. Whether it's a dying battery, "typical" close call encounters with the villains, car chases that require driving backwards or on the wrong side of the road, director Ellis keeps the pace lightning fast by presenting every plausible hindrance there is to keeping a cell phone signal alive. That might not be as immediately catchy a premise as keeping a bus above 50 mph, but it's hard to care when the gimmick is delivered with this much fresh skill and energy. Ellis also directed the enjoyable Final Destination 2, proving he has what it takes to deliver straight-faced thrillers in spite of their naturally ridiculous premises.

But as terrific a job as Ellis does, it's the cast that keeps the momentum going even when the story starts to sag. As the everyman caught in this horrifying situation, Chris Evans is wholly convincing and immensely appealing as Ryan, playing out an otherwise simple role for all its worth. Most of the movie rests on his shoulders, so it's to no small amount of praise when I say that we eagerly want to follow him through every move of his day-long adventure. Kim Basinger is surprisingly just as good as the kidnapped woman, proving that much like her physical features, her acting skills are improving with age. The other major standout is Jason Statham as the head kidnapper; he's obviously affecting an American accent that's not all that believable, but he brings an intensity to the role that makes him fiercely menacing.

The plot boasts the expected coincidences and contrivances that are needed to fuel the story, and most of these are easy enough to accept, but there are admittedly a few nagging problems. While I could reasonably believe that the kidnappers wouldn't tie up Jessica and could also accept that she knows just enough about phones to fix one up well enough to make one call, I found it less easy to swallow that the kidnappers wouldn't at least keep a guard posted right outside or inside her room. No biggie, though.

The more bothersome bits involve a few unlikely coincidences that allow a cop (played by William H. Macy, who delivers another one of his requisite subtly funny performances) to conveniently piece together a number of the clues. Even more troublesome is the climax, which has the unfortunate task of resolving every introduced plot strand, and while the results are still highly entertaining, it comes across a bit messy (though ironically finishing things up on a nice and tidy final note).

Still, the story makes a lot of right choices when a lesser movie would have simply veered off course for good. A plot twist involving the villains' identities and their motives is smart and surprising. The movie also satisfyingly chooses to reveal its surprise villain halfway through rather than saving it for a silly last-minute unveiling.

The film also boasts a good sense of humor, a lot of it coming from Evans, who handles the comic moments with natural ease (no real surprise, he was also very funny in Not Another Teen Movie). His best moment comes in one scene where he's in a private school searching for Jessica's kid, flabbergasted over his name (which is particularly funny) and how identical every student looks in the same brand of clothing. The laughs don't defuse the tension, though, and it's with this fun mixture of suspense and occasional comic ingenuity that makes this a highly recommended thriller.

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22 out of 37 people found the following comment useful :-
Insult to an average intelligence, 24 January 2005

Author: Carlos Schvartzman (casch0101) from Asunción, PARAGUAY

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Before buying my ticket, I first got into IMDb.com and read (as always) Ebert's and Berardinelli's reviews first. Then, lots of the others. About everyone said this movie was good and the liked it. The idea is good, but..come on!, the movie is preposterous. Near the end, just the two flying whirls in the air by William Macy shooting are enough to get you out of the theater!. A boy crying out loud "...that kid is being kidnapped..." and everyone goes after him and not the kidnappers in their car!. A biology teacher (Bassinger) who handles phone cables left after the phone was beaten up to crack by the bad guy(how about taking it *out* the room, you moron!) better than expert phone service technicians!. Everyone steals a car and other stuff in front of people and policemen and no one, no one does a single thing!. No one cares about plates in this movie, they are not being jotted down, nor searched at computers and databases, nothing. Main actor Chris Evans looks as a Ricky Nelson just arrived in 2004 with his time machine. In short, besides entertaining a little bit, this movie was an overall insult to my intelligence and probably to those of many others, too.

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9 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :-
All lines are busy..., 24 September 2004

Author: Merwyn Grote (majikstl@aol.com) from St. Louis, Missouri

I like a movie that takes an idea or a theme or just an amusing gimmick and then runs with it. There is something exhilarating about being able to exhaust the possibilities of an idea without beating the whole thing to death. A great example is GROUNDHOG DAY; just when you think the filmmakers have milked the idea for all it's worth, they take off on a totally new tangent and the film ends up getting better and better. It is a sign that the writer and/or the director are thrilled with the sheer joy of creative exploration. They aren't just playing by the numbers, but are eager to go beyond expectations. This is film-making as a challenging game.

CELLULAR, while not in the same league as GROUNDHOG DAY, is nonetheless a good example of this type of storytelling. This time the linchpin of the story is the cell phone. The filmmakers seem to have made a list of everything that makes cell phones great (emergency use, portability, digital photography, etc.) as well as what makes them a nuisance (ringing at inappropriate times, crossed connections, lost signals, dying batteries, etc.) and incorporated both lists into a story. The trick isn't just to gerryrig the list into a story, but to do so in a coherent and plausible fashion. CELLULAR is a crackerjack piece of storytelling. The storyline is unlikely, but not impossible and it all unfolds at a steady clip that makes any loophole or implausibility fly by so fast that the viewer has little time to raise a question.

Beyond the gimmickry of the storytelling, the film also benefits from being a solid, efficient, no-nonsense piece of film-making. Directed by actor-turned-stuntman-turned-director David R. Ellis, this is an action-packed thriller that knows the value of blending action with humor and character. Without loosing its manic pace, the film nevertheless takes time for puckish humor and character development. As the damsel in distress, the Hitchcockian innocent man sucked into a web of intrigue and the retiring cop facing his one last case, the actors could have been saddled with one-note, cliché characters. But Kim Basinger, Chris Evans and William H. Macy are given ample room to not only act, but to create characters who are, more importantly, smart. They aren't at the mercy of the complicated plot, they are what moves it along.

My one genuine reservation with CELLULAR is that it is destined to become dated so very fast. Technology, the film's driving force, will quickly be its undoing. It brings to mind old episodes of the "Columbo" TV series, where Peter Falk's Lt. Columbo is seen to be in awe of computers and answering machines and video cameras and VCRs, and he has to go into great detail explaining how such gadgets and gizmos work and how they can be used as part of a murder plot. The cutting edge technology of the time now seems so elementary that Columbo's naivete seems rather silly. Yet, the Columbo stories still hold up thanks to clever storytelling and strong characters played by good actors. And from that perspective, CELLULAR just might hold up to be a minor classic, albeit as a period piece.

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13 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Cohen makes the difference, 20 April 2006

Author: mgrindberg from Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Not that this film will change the world or anything, but as far as movies go, you could do a lot worse, and probably have. What sets this picture apart from other action/police corruption stories is that, while the story is far enough fetched to be basically unbelievable,and the characters are skin deep, it has a certain self-sustaining entertainment value that rises and falls but comes through in those clutch moments just when you're wondering if it all is just another waste of time. The sunny LA settings, the Santa Monica Pier, the bikinis, the youthful characters, William Macy, etc... keep it moving along, but the real force behind it all is the topical humor about cell phone technology that the film capitalizes on, and the idea that gets developed throughout about tying communications technology and complete strangers into the basic plot about the corrupt police and the Rodney King style video shot by a random witness to a brutal and lethal police encounter with some LA gang members. That's quite a bit of ground, and it all ends in a great scene under the pier in the dappled light of a storage shed with surfboards and other water related items strewn about. It's good to see Larry Cohen's name on the writing credits, and once you finish watching the film, his touch, though you may not have known it was there, is evident.

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15 out of 25 people found the following comment useful :-
one of the worst films I've seen, 24 December 2005

Author: paulsandberg from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I had high hopes for this film, as it seems every critic was enamored with it. Boy, I sure can't for the life of me see why. Implausible from the get go, laughingly stilted dialog, you name it, this film has it. Why in the heck would Wm. Macy and Kim Bassinger submit to this trash? And yet some critics compare it favorably to Phone Booth - what are you guys smoking?

Just an example of the terrible writing - The kidnappers steal Kim's Porsche Cayanne and then all she can say to her cell buddy when attempting to thwart the kidnapping of her son is that her car is a "black SUV". Come on!!! She HAS to know that it's a Porsche for Chrissakes - not to mention that giving the license number may have helped. DUH!

And then when there's nobody home on the fourth floor of the PD - yeah, sure.

I finally had had enough when the slacker dude takes off after the Porsche in the tiny Security car - uh huh, like he could keep up with the Porsche or that the Security Car wouldn't look conspicuous and the kidnappers, realizing that they were being followed, would simply put pedal to the metal and say "see ya" - a premise that seems beyond the reasoning of our hero.

I'm all for action films, but you have to at least have some basis in reality, and this film truly lacks that basis. Maybe someone thought the whole idea was clever - 1001 ways to make use of a cell phone, but when there is absolutely no reality quotient.... well it just makes a bad film.

Anyone else wonder (1) how a school teacher would be home in the middle of the day (and able to then pick up her son after school) (2) how a school teacher who, by her own admission, doesn't have a lot of money, lives in a fancy house, has a maid, drives a 70,000 dollar car, and has her son enrolled in a private school. Totally laughable.

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