The Cell

Infobox Film
name = The Cell


caption = Original film poster
amg_id = 1:195764
imdb_id = 0209958
director = Tarsem Singh
producer = Julio Caro Eric McLeod
writer = Mark Protosevich
starring = Jennifer Lopez Vince Vaughn Vincent D'Onofrio Jake Weber Dylan Baker Marianne Jean-Baptiste Jake Thomas
music = Howard Shore Master Musicians of Jajouka
cinematography = Paul Laufer
editing = Robert Duffy
released = United States:
August 18, 2000
runtime = 107 min.
country = filmUS
language = English
budget = $33,000,000
gross = $104,155,843
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"The Cell" is a 2000 psychological thriller film written by Mark Protosevich, directed by Tarsem Singh and starring Jennifer Lopez. The movie was nominated for the Academy Award for Makeup. Some external scenes in the film were shot at the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, California.

Plot

Child psychologist (Jennifer Lopez) Catherine Deane is an expert in an experimental treatment for coma patients. A virtual reality device allows her to enter into the minds of her patients, which are rendered as 3D worlds, and attempt to coax them from their comas. When serial killer Carl Rudolph Stargher falls into a coma before the FBI can locate his final victim, Agent Novak (Vince Vaughn) convinces Deane to enter Stargher's mind and discover the victim's location. As Deane enters Stargher's mind, his victim is trapped in a cell that slowly fills with water by means of an automatic timer.

Inside Stargher's dark and twisted mind, Deane is almost immediately confronted with Stargher's murderous personality, which manifests as a demonic tyrant. Stifling her initial fears, Deane comes to discover the innocent half of Stargher's psyche. He shows her the traumatic events that twisted his mind to murder, including his father's abuse, a seizure during his baptism, and the drowning of a wounded bird as a mercy killing. Deane attempts to nurture the innocent side of Stargher's mind, but his powerful murderous half thwarts her.

Despite Deane's best efforts, she becomes trapped in Stargher's dark dreamscape. Novak volunteers to enter Stargher's mind and attempt to rescue her. He manages to break Deane from Stargher's hold and discovers clues to the whereabouts of his victim. He exits Stargher's mind and rescues the girl from the cell just before she drowns. Meanwhile, Deane decides to reverse the process and pull Stargher's mind into her own. She presents Stargher's innocent side with an Eden-like paradise, but his murderous side is always present, and manifests as a serpent. This time, however, Deane has all the power. She attacks the serpent-Stargher, but discovers that she cannot destroy one half without killing the other. Stargher's innocent side reminds her of the bird he drowned, and Deane reluctantly complies, killing him out of mercy.

Later, Deane comes to use her new approach in her regular therapy, pulling a comatose boy into her own mind to shelter him from his demons.

Artistic influences

Some of "The Cell"'s scenes are inspired by works of art. A scene in which a horse is split into sections was inspired by the works of British artist Damien Hirst. [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0209958/trivia The Cell (2000) - Trivia ] ] The film also includes scenes based on the work of other late 20th century artists, including Odd Nerdrum, H. R. Giger, and the Brothers Quay. [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0209958/trivia The Cell (2000) - Trivia ] ] Many aspects of the killer's dream sequences bear resemblance to the imagery used in music videos directed by Mark Romanek, Nine Inch Nails "Closer" and "The Perfect Drug," Madonna's "Bedtime Story," and the many videos that Floria Sigismondi directed for Marilyn Manson. Other, older sources of inspiration are also likely influences on Singh's films as well as these music videos; examples include Joel-Peter Witkin and Luis Buñuel ("Un Chien Andalou").

Box office

U.S. box office domestic takings: $61,334,059. Foreign markets: $42,821,784. [ [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=cell.htm The Cell (2000) ] ]

Cast

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0209958|title=The Cell

Box Office Leaders USA
before = "Bless the Child"
date = August 20
year = 2000
after = "Bring It On"