"The story moves briskly, the action is pulse-charging, and the laughs are many."
Lisa Rose NEWARK STAR-LEDGER
"It's an honest, unpretentious, well-made B picture with a clever, silly premise, a handful of sly, unassuming performances and enough car chases, decent jokes and swervy plot complications to make the price of the ticket seem like a decent bargain."
A O Scott NEW YORK TIMES
"Thrilling, chilling, comical, and completely illogical but after the dog days of summer, it is refreshing to watch a picture that knows how to entertain its audience."
Michael Elliott MOVIE PARABLES
"Don't hang up on this one; "Cellular" really connects."
Jackie K Cooper JACKIEKCOOPER.COM
"This is one of the year's best thrillers. Better than Phone Booth, for my money, and I liked that, too."
Roger Ebert CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
"A nifty little flick--precisely the kind of well-done, unambitious genre piece I always find myself overpraising to friends."
Sean Burns PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY
"Using the clever premise, it packs a lot of thrills into a short space while keeping the level of tension consistently high."
James Berardinelli REELVIEWS
"The true beauty of this film is how the dramatic tension builds to almost unbearable levels, only to be snapped by a bit of humor, and then over and over takes up once again."
Paul Clinton CNN
"Cellular is the year's first feel-good thriller."
Tyler Hanley PALO ALTO WEEKLY
"I enjoyed every one of its 89 minutes."
Stephen Hunter WASHINGTON POST
"..... boasts an entertaining cocktail of gunpowder, suspense, adrenaline, and cheese."
Wesley Morris BOSTON GLOBE
The Inside Story
"A plucky thriller that also serves as a satire on today's instant- gratification phone culture." Tom Keogh SEATTLE TIMES
A thriller with plenty of good laughs? You'd better believe it, for that's the big bonus [besides watching William H Macy at work], the defining ingredient that makes "Cellular" so much fun to watch and such a great 'little' movie. So why would they make a film about a kidnapping and inject humour into it? "I’m a big fan of situational humor and I feel like comedy plays best when it’s the right thing at the right time and not just somebody trying to make a joke," explains screenwriter Chris Morgan. "For example, in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" when Indiana Jones is faced with fighting the swordsman and he just pulls out a gun and shoots him. That’s not really a joke, but it got a huge laugh. That’s the kind of humor we tried to work in to this script." And it works exceptionally well. It would be easy to overlook "Cellular" at a time when there are so many big films all lining up for a shot at the 2005 Academy Awards, and while "Cellular" isn't in the same league as "Sideways" or "The Aviator", in its own right this is a really fun and very rewarding film that many critics would write off as a very good 'B-Grade' thriller. And like the film, the story of how "Cellular" got to the big screen is full of just as many twists and turns, as they say. The Larry Cohen script first landed on the desk of Lauren Lloyd who was at that time, the Executive Vice President of Sony Pictures. Lloyd admits that while she liked what she read, there was no support from fellow Sony Pictures executives to take up an option. In the end Lloyd bought the rights herself. It was a big gamble, so what was it that grabbed her. "When I first read the script, it was about a guy who wasn’t very heroic," Lloyd recalled. "He was a driver for a bank robbery and the woman wasn’t really kidnapped. But this single idea of staying on a cell phone when someone’s life is in danger and being unable to hang up, seemed so visceral and immediate that I loved the script."
Now working as an independent producer, she took the script to "Independence Day" Dean Devlin who "agreed to team up with Lloyd to further develop the project." Lloyd and Devlin agreed they needed a fresh approach to the concept. That's when screenwriter Chris Morgan came on board. Morgan says that "the film offered a chance to write the kind of action movie that had always appealed to him, a story about how an everyday person can become heroic when faced with a certain set of trying circumstances. I’ve always been a fan of movies where the hero isn’t the smartest or toughest guy, but he is the one with the most heart; someone like Indiana Jones, for example," he explains. The part of Ryan, the films hero went to actor Chris Evans who is probably best known to audiences for his part in "Not Another Teen Movie", who seems the perfect choice. "We got really lucky with the casting of Chris Evans, who plays Ryan," notes Morgan, "because he pulls that off so well. You really believe he’s going to go the distance and once you get him on your side, he’s a full-on hero." At the helm of the project is "Final Destination 2" Director and veteran stunt coordinator, David R Ellis. "This film is really a race against time, but with an ordinary college-age kid at the center of it," he said. "Ryan isn’t a super-hero and the challenge was to create action that fit with his character. We had to put him in extraordinary circumstances, but at the same time we didn’t want to see him putting people in jeopardy with cars turning over and catching fire and stuff like that." Ellis's work on the project impressed not only the producers, but also the cast which includes Academy Award winning actress Kim Basinger. "David is a very grounded person who has great appreciation for talent. The director can make or break the attitude and atmosphere on the set," Basinger said. "David is the best I have seen at making sure each individual in each department is treated with respect. Besides all that he is just plain fun!" That is what makes David R Ellis such "a great 'little' movie." It's damn good fun to watch!
Crew Bytes
"CELLULAR" was .......
directed by David R Ellis [2nd Unit Director on "The Negotiator", "The Perfect Storm", "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", "The Matrix Reloaded" AND Director of "Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco" and "Final Destination 2"]; screenplay by Chris Morgan ["Cellular"]; original story by Larry Cohen ["Return of the Seven", "El Condor", "Perfect Strangers", "Body Snatchers", "Misbegotten" and "Phone Booth"]; costume design by Christopher Lawrence ["The Anniversary Party", "Bubble Boy", "Showtime" and "The Alibi"]; production design by Jaymes Hinkle ["Blade Runner", "48 Hours", "Lethal Weapon" and "The Perfect Score"]; edited by EMMY & Eddie Award winner Eric Sears A.C.E ["New York, New York", "The Last Waltz", "Encino Man" and "Final Destination 2"]; director of photograhpy Gary Capo ["The Perfect Storm", "Deep Blue Sea", "K-19: The Widowmaker" and "Face/Off"]; original music by BAFTA Award winner John Ottman ["X-Men", "Urban Legends 2", "Eight Legged Freaks" and "Gothika"] produced by Dean Devlin ["Stargate", "Independence Day", "Godzilla" and "The Patriot"] and Lauren Lloyd ["Evita", "While You Were Sleeping", "The Patriot" and "Vertical Limit"].
Casting About
"CELLULAR" stars .......
Academy Award, SAG and Golden Globe Award winner Kim Basinger ["9 1/2 Weeks", "Blind Date", "LA Confidential" and "8 Mile"]; Chris Evans ["Not Another Teen Movie", "The Perfect Score", "The Orphan King" and "Fierce People"]; Jason Statham ["Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels", "Snatch", "The Transporter" and "The Italian Job"]; Eric Christian Olsen ["Dumb & Dumberer", "Not Another Teen Movie", "The Hot Chick" and "Local Boys"]; Noah Emmerich ["Copland", "The Truman Show", "Frequency" and "Windtalkers"] and SAG & EMMY Award winner William H Macy ["State and Main", "Happy Texas", "Wag The Dog", "Fargo" and "The Cooler"] as .
What It's All About
"This serviceable little thriller makes satisfyingly clever use of some of today's most universal annoyances and benefits from the always-watchable William H Macy." Nell Minow MOVIE MOM AT YAHOO! MOVIES
Science teacher Jessica Martin has returned home after seeing her son Ricky off to school. She is no sooner inside the house than masked gunmen force their way in, kill her housekeeper and kidnap her. Taken to an unknown location, Jessica is locked in an upstairs attic where the leader of the kidnappers, Ethan Greer threatens and menaces her. He wants information but Jessica doesn't understand just what that information is. Left in the attic Jessica discovers a working phone, but Greer returns to smash it. Left on her own. Jessica works at putting the phone back together and manages to make a call. The person who answers the call is Ryan, a young man who is trying to prove to his former girlfriend that he has changed and is ready to act responsibly. At first he doesn't believe the voice on his mobile phone. He's highly skeptical until he hears Ethan threatening her. Convinced, Ryan is suddenly in a race against time. Somehow he has to find Jessica. Before it's too late!
The Verdict
"A gripping thriller that puntuates action and suspence with superbly timed humour. Kym Bassinger returns to the screen as kidnap victim Jessica Martin and is absolutely convincing in the role. Statham makes a very menacing kidnapper while Chris Evans does an excellent job as the man on the cell phone. The added bonus for this highly entertaining film is that we get to see William H Macy doing his thing and doing it very well. Highly recommended. Excellent value for your cinema dollars."
The Cast
Kim Basinger
Adam Taylor Gordon
Jason Statham
Eric Etebari
Chris Evans
William H Macy
Caroline Aaron
Will Beinbrink
Jessica Biel
Rick Hoffman
Chantille Boudousque
Richard Burgi
Nikki Christian
Matt Clifford
Greg Collins
Valerie Cruz
Eddie Driscoll
Noah Emmerich
Willie Gault
Ernie Grunwald
Summer Hubbell
Brendan Kelly
Mark Kubr
Robert Lawrence
Kate London
Matt McColm
Esther 'Tita' Mercado
Mircea Monroe
Rob Nagle
Eric Christian Olsen
Dat Phan
Lorna Scott
Sherri Shepherd
Sean Smith
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Jessica Martin
Ricky Martin
Ethan
Dmitri
Ryan
Mooney
Marilyn Mooney
Security Guard
Chloe
WLSUU2 Lawyer
Chloe's Friend
Craig Martin
Porsche Girl
Carnival Guest
Older Security Guard
Bayback
Crewcut Officer
Jack Tanner
Detector Operator
'Cellular' Store Assistant
Beach Girl's Friend
Mad Dog
Eurotrash Man
Auto Theft Detective
Newscaster
Deason
Rosario
Chloe's Friend
Paramedic
Chad
Vietnamese Artist
Bank Teller
Jaded Cashier
Perky Salesman
The Crew
Directed by David R Ellis
Story by Larry Cohen
Screenplay by Chris Morgan
Produced by Dean Devlin & Lauren Lloyd
Original Music by John Ottman
Cinematography by Gary Capo
Film Editing by Eric A Sears
Casting by Roger Mussenden
Production Design by Jaymes Hinkle
Art Direction by Domenic Silvestri
Set Decoration by Robert Gould
Costume Design by Christopher Lawrence
Unit Production Manager Richard J Gelfand
Run Time 94 minutes
Rated M15+ [AUST]
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