Cellular (2004)

I didn't see this movie until probably 2007. I don't even remember it being advertised. Then someone recommended it for a stormy weekend that most folk were already planning a marathon. Said it was the sleeper of the last 5 years. Ddaaahhhnnnnngggg....could NOT have been more right. I mean Amazon Prime *still* rents it for $4. It's *that* good. It's a buy and keep for sure. I don't want to give away spoilers or more than the synopsis, because *you* need to watch it for the plot twists and superb acting yourself. The script and character development are both amazing. Chris Evans, William H. Macy and Kim Bassinger give highly praiseworthy performances. And if you think I purposely left out Jason Statham, I did not, so *don't* think you know his type of character acting when watching this movie.If you've read my other movie reviews, you'll know I'm a tough sell to 'animate my suspended disbelief', but this one, I think any of us could see happening in the current news. No point in dragging this out. Just watch it. Enjoy. Thank me later.

The kidnap hostage always has a cell phone to call someone with. Why did the kidnappers let her keep it? The cell phone can call other people in other places as well as the two people talking all at the same time. Conveniently the bad guys answer the phone instead of murdering their hostage. The hero drives his car backwards full speed through a tunnel jammed with traffic without hitting anyone. The action is entertaining but the fights are stretched out too long just like the other scenes in the movie. Even the corny line of Basinger after she's been rescued, "how can I ever repay you?" sounded more like a line from a MAD magazine movie satire than any film someone would make. Stuntwork goes overtime to impress people and cover the absurdity of it all.

This movie is not only a solid, spellbinding thriller; it is a rare example of Hollywood taking on truly powerful forces. The issue of police brutality has gone viral since this movie was made in 2004- one can see new, horrifying examples of it every day on You Tube. What makes this film so daring, so bold, and so unique is the fact it doesn't follow the normal mainstream media mantra of ignoring police corruption. It certainly doesn't glorify the police, as so many insipid television shows and movies do. It postulates a believable premise; that these corrupt officials would resort to killing an innocent family who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Looking at the writers and the Director (who died early this year at a premature age- no cause listed that I could find), there is not much to suggest a piece of work like this. But they certainly deserve credit for exposing a very real problem and creating an entertaining drama. I highly recommend this film to everyone.

It's rare when I movie is so bad that I don't watch the entire thing. I realize there has to be some level of stupidity on the part of some characters to make a situation last long enough to be a movie rather than a clip. However the first twenty minutes of Cellular proved that not only were all the characters stupid in behavior, the acting was horrible, there were way too many convenient consequences for the character Ryan, and too many unbelievable situations (anyone in southern California will tell you how rare it is to find a parking spot right in front of every building you go to!) Although I didn't watch the entire movie I seriously doubt if it could have morphed into something remotely enjoyable or entertaining in it's last 75 minutes. I do believe it would be a perfect choice for the peanut gallery wisecracks of MST 3000.