Cell
Theatrical release poster
Directed byTod Williams
Screenplay by
Based onCell
by Stephen King
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyMichael Simmonds
Edited byJacob Craycroft
Music byMarcelo Zarvos
Production
companies
  • Benaroya Pictures[1]
  • International Film Trust
  • 120dB Films
  • Cargo Entertainment
  • The Genre Company[1]
Distributed bySaban Films
Release date
  • June 10, 2016 (2016-06-10)
Running time
98 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1 million[3]

Cell is a 2016 American science fiction horror film based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Stephen King. The film is directed by Tod Williams, produced by John Cusack, with a screenplay by King and Adam Alleca. The film stars John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, and Isabelle Fuhrman. The film was released on June 10, 2016 to video on demand, prior to a limited release scheduled for July 8, 2016.[4] Cell is the second film adaptation of a King story to co-star Cusack and Jackson, after the 2007 film 1408. The film's story follows a New England artist struggling to reunite with his young son after a mysterious signal broadcast over the global cell phone network turns the majority of his fellow humans into mindless vicious animals.

The film received negative reviews from critics upon its release for being poorly crafted and lacking suspense.

Plot

Clay Riddell is a disillusioned artist, who a year earlier abandoned his wife Sharon and son Johnny in order to fulfill his dream of publishing a graphic novel. At Boston International Airport, Clay tries to board a flight, hoping to reconcile with his family. His phone battery dies, so he calls Sharon using a payphone. An electronic signal (later dubbed "the pulse") is broadcast across mobile networks worldwide, turning cell phone users into rabid killers. Escaping the chaos in the terminal, Clay meets some survivors in a subway car. The train's conductor, Tom McCourt, suggests abandoning the train and traveling through the tunnels. Clay agrees and, joined by a third man, attempts to escape the airport.

Near the tunnel's exit, their companion is slaughtered by an infected man, later dubbed a "phoner". Clay leads Tom to his apartment. That night, they are joined by Alice Maxwell, a teenage neighbor who killed her mother in self-defense. All three decide to escape Boston. Heading north through New England to find Sharon and Johnny, the three acquire weapons from a house and are chased by phoners to a nearby river. They hide from the infected, who start emitting signals from their mouths before walking off as a group.

After sundown, the three arrive at a private school and meet two survivors: headmaster Charles Ardai and student Jordan. Charles postulates that the phoners have developed a hive mind and are telepathic. He shows them thousands of phoners lying inert in the school's athletic field. Charles has a plan to use the stadium's gas pumps and a sprayer truck to burn the phoners, and the others agree to help. Clay and Tom drive over the phoners, spraying them with gasoline, which Charles sets ablaze. The fire spreads, causing an explosion that kills Charles.

The remaining group, now including Jordan, take shelter at an abandoned drive-in theater. After going to sleep, they all dream of a raggedy-looking man in a red hoodie, a character from Clay's book. Later, they encounter survivors in a roadside bar. There, they learn about Kashwak, a state park in Maine where there is said to be no cell service. After agreeing to travel there, they spend the night in the bar. Sally, one of the survivors, is awoken and infected by a group outside. She can now transmit the pulse through her mouth. The group attacks Tom and Jordan. After saving Tom from a phoner, Alice is bludgeoned in the head by Sally, whom Tom kills. The group takes Alice outside, where she succumbs to her head wound.

Later, the group encounter a sleepless Ray Huizenga and his friend Denise, who say that Kashwak is a trap set by the Raggedy Man. Ray becomes increasingly agitated, muttering that the Raggedy Man is planting thoughts in his head. He gives Clay his phone and tells him to call the number on it when they reach the end of the road. Ray then kills himself with a bomb. In Ray's truck, the group discovers a huge quantity of C-4 explosives. When they make it to Sharon's house, Clay learns that Johnny has headed for Kashwak and Sharon has turned into a phoner. After killing her, Clay drives alone to Kashwak, intent on locating Johnny, while the others continue north, leaving marks as a trail for Clay.

At Kashawk, Clay finds thousands of phoners walking in a circle around a communications tower. Clay sees the Raggedy Man at the center of the circle, runs him over and repeatedly shoots him. Then Clay hears his son calling to him from amongst the flock and escapes from the circle. An infected Johnny appears before him, and the Raggedy Man returns to life. Clay hugs his son as he calls the number on Ray's phone, detonating the explosives in the truck, destroying the tower and the phoners. Clay and his son find the marks and follow the trail toward Clay's friends. However, the explosion is revealed to be an illusion: Clay has been infected and now walks in the circle around the tower.

Cast

  • John Cusack as Clayton "Clay" Riddell
  • Samuel L. Jackson as Thomas "Tom" McCourt
  • Isabelle Fuhrman as Alice Maxwell
  • Clark Sarullo as Sharon Riddell
  • Ethan Andrew Casto as Johnny Riddell
  • Owen Teague as Jordan
  • Stacy Keach as Charles Ardai
  • Joshua Mikel as Raggedy Man
  • Anthony Reynolds as Ray Huizenga
  • Erin Elizabeth Burns as Denise
  • Jeffrey Hallman as Hog Tied Man
  • Mark Ashworth as Bartender
  • Wilbur Fitzgerald as Geoff
  • Catherine Dyer as Sally
  • E. Roger Mitchell as Roscoe
  • Alex ter Avest as Chloe
  • Gaby Layner as Maddy
  • Rey Hernandez as Rick
  • Frederick C. Johnson Jr as Rick's Partner
  • Michael Beasley as Construction Worker
  • Tom Key as Older Man
  • Angela Davis as Blood Stained Woman
  • Griffin Freeman as Mike Mattick
  • Lloyd Kaufman as Bystander

Production

Development

The film is based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Stephen King. Dimension Films announced in March 2006 that Eli Roth would direct the project after finishing Hostel: Part II.[5] Roth exited the project in 2009, saying:

There was just sort of a difference in opinion on how to make the film and what the story should be, and there's a different direction the studio wants to go with it. It was very friendly because it's the Weinsteins (Bob Weinstein and Harvey Weinstein), they made Inglourious Basterds and we're all friends. I said, 'I'm not really interested in doing the film this way. You guys go ahead and I'm going to make my own films.' I've also learned that I really am only interested in directing original stories that I write, that's another thing I learned through that whole process.[6]

Following Roth's departure, Screen Rant noted that the film "faded into the background".[7] However, in October 2012, John Cusack was announced as the first actor to join the film, followed by the selection of Tod Williams as director in early 2013.[8][7] In November 2013, Samuel L. Jackson was cast as Tom McCourt.[9] Isabelle Fuhrman was announced as Alice on February 5, 2014, and Stacy Keach was cast in an unnamed role of a headmaster the following day.[10][11] The film was shot over 25 days in January 2014 in Atlanta, Georgia.[12]

Release

In February 2015, the producers of the film announced that Clarius Entertainment had acquired distribution rights.[13] The company, now called Aviron Pictures, later dropped the film.[14] Saban Films later acquired distribution rights to the film.[15] It was to receive its world premiere at FrightFest as part of the Glasgow Film Festival but was replaced at the last minute by Pandemic.[16] The film was released on June 10, 2016, to video on demand, prior to opening in a limited release on July 8, 2016.[1]

Reception

Cell was panned by most critics.[17] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 11% based on 57 reviews and an average score of 3.8/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Shoddily crafted and devoid of suspense, Cell squanders a capable cast and Stephen King's once-prescient source material on a bland rehash of zombie cliches."[18] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 38 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[19]

Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times criticized the film's "bare-bones screenplay" for being "wholly unable to deliver even a smidgen of nuance or depth", and called Cusack's performance "possibly the most detached" of his career.[20] Owen Gleiberman of Variety referred to the outbreak scene in the airport as the "only unsettling scene" in the film, and wrote that "the film is about as close as you could get to a generic low-budget undead thriller".[21] Steve Greene of IndieWire gave the film a grade of "C−", calling it "a character study with a dearth of character", and concluding that the film has "no greater message [...] except that using a Bluetooth headset to call someone from an airport bathroom stall should be punishable by zombification".[22]

Odie Henderson of RogerEbert.com gave the film two-and-a-half stars out of four, commending the performances of Cusack, Jackson, and Keach but criticizing the film's "occasional lack of storytelling clarity", calling it "rushed and unclear in its details about the pulse and its aftermath".[23] Patrick Cooper of Bloody Disgusting called it a "forgettable adaptation" and further stated that "the story packs absolutely no punch and the solid stable of actors look bored for most of the film".[24] Nico Lang of Consequence of Sound wrote that Cell wasted an intriguing premise and called it "unnecessarily glum and grim," as well as "pretty dumb".[25] Bob Grimm of Coachella Valley Independent wrote that the movie "is easily one of the worst adaptations ever of a King story".[26]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Evry, Max (April 26, 2016). "Cell Trailer and Poster: John Cusack & Samuel L. Jackson & Zombies". ComingSoon.net. CraveOnline Media. Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  2. ↑ "CELL (15)". British Board of Film Classification. November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Cell (2016)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
  4. ↑ Miska, Brad (April 26, 2016). "The 'CELL' Trailer Rings in a Zombie-esque Apocalypse!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved April 26, 2016.
  5. ↑ Fleming, Michael (March 7, 2006). "Dimension hits speed dial". Variety. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  6. ↑ Douglas, Edward. "Eli Roth Not Involved with Hostel III". ShockTillYouDrop. Archived from the original on July 11, 2009. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
  7. 1 2 Vieira, Anthony (May 15, 2013). "Stephen King 'Zombie' Film 'Cell' To Be Directed by 'Paranormal Activity 2' Helmer". Screen Rant. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  8. ↑ Kay, Jeremy (October 31, 2012). "John Cusack to star in Cargo's Stephen King adaptation Cell". Screen Daily. Screen International. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  9. ↑ McClintock, Pamela (November 4, 2013). "AFM: Samuel L. Jackson Joins Cast of 'Cell'". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  10. ↑ Fleming, Mike Jr. (February 5, 2014). "Isabelle Fuhrman Joins Stephen King's 'The Cell'". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  11. ↑ McNary, Dave (February 6, 2014). "Berlin: Isabelle Fuhrman, Stacy Keach Join Stephen King Adaptation 'Cell'". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  12. ↑ Fletcher, Rosie (February 18, 2016). "Cell is set to give a signal boost to a new kind of zombie movie". GamesRadar+. Future Publishing. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  13. ↑ Logan, Elizabeth (February 5, 2015). "Clarius Entertainment Acquires 'Cell,' Starring John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson". IndieWire. Penske Business Media. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Stephen King's Cell No Longer Has US Distribution". Box Office Flops. December 10, 2015. Archived from the original on April 7, 2016. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Cell (2016)". Film Ratings. Classification & Ratings Administration. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
  16. ↑ Unsworth, Martin (January 22, 2016). "PANDEMIC Added to Film4 FrightFest Glasgow". Starburst. Archived from the original on April 24, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2016.
  17. ↑ Calvario, Liz (June 14, 2016). "'Cell' Review Roundup: Critics Agree That The Stephen King Adaptation Is Unimpressive". IndieWire. Penske Business Media. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Cell (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  19. ↑ "Cell Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  20. ↑ Catsoulis, Jeannette (July 7, 2016). "Review: 'Cell' Offers Zombified Victims and an Unfocused Narrative". The New York Times. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  21. ↑ Gleiberman, Owen (July 8, 2016). "Film Review: 'Cell'". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  22. ↑ Greene, Steve (July 6, 2016). "'Cell' Review: Stephen King Novel Becomes a Phony Zombie Story". IndieWire. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  23. ↑ Henderson, Odie (July 8, 2016). "Cell movie review & film summary (2016)". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  24. ↑ Cooper, Patrick (June 13, 2016). "Stephen King's 'Cell' Is Another Forgettable Adaptation". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  25. ↑ Lang, Nico (June 13, 2016). "A Stephen King adaptation that starts promising and devolves into nonsense". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  26. ↑ Grimm, Bob (June 14, 2014). "'Cell' Wastes Stephen King's Plot While Illustrating the Decline of John Cusack's Career". Coachella Valley Independent. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
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