 | Cellular Director: David Ellis Rated: M Now showing  Kim Basinger has never been one of my favourite actresses, so here I'll mention just once that her syrup sickly, yet sincerely scared role in this oh So-Cal sugary suspense thriller was adequate enough to help bounce the plot along as it very neatly unfolds at a perfectly even pitched mid-tempo pace.Basinger (or Jessica Martin as she's known here) is a science teacher at her twelve year old son's school, whose housekeeper is suddenly shot by home invading thugs for no known reason. She finds herself kidnapped and locked in a remote attic. After the baddies sledgehammer the phone so she can't make contact with the outside world, our brainy soccer mom then proceeds to tap a couple of wires together - for hours - until she manages to randomly dial someone. There to answer the call is Ryan (Chris Evans), a handsome twenty-something irresponsible beach loving guy with a brand new 'Nokia' mobile phone that has lots of nifty features (this we know because as part of an obvious product placement deal, Ryan proudly points them out throughout the film); but I digress. Now, faced with the dilemma of running a redeeming errand for an ex-girlfriend or believing Jessica's distress call not to be a hoax, our hero Ryan chooses the latter. The trouble is, he has no idea where she's being held and nor can he hang up in fear of losing the line! Ahh, the persuasive magic of Hollywood! For as far fetched as the storytelling may be, the whole time one is sitting there with popcorn at the ready happily allowing oneself to be suckered in by the twists and turns. And my, how things go wrong for our unlikely hero! So much so you could even be forgiven for mistaking this for a comedy, thanks to Evans' reckless Ryan and William H Macy's tired old veteran cop, Sergeant Mooney, along with a few other mildly colourful characters all armed with one-liners that seem to be delivered with periodic preciseness. But then let's not forget poor Jessica, and later her son and husband, who are still mercilessly being held hostage by a gang of really nasty, if not overtly textbook bad guys. Written by Larry Cohen, the same bloke who conjured up 2003's 'Phone Booth'; while his former work kept me intrigued to the near end before leaving me hugely disappointed, 'Cellular' at least is consistently measured throughout. And despite there being a lack of originality, especially with a few of the character revelations, the thing I liked most about 'Cellular' is how shiny new and fresh it all looks. And that certainly adds to the overall fun and enjoyment. Am I wrong to say that about a supposed suspense thriller?  | |
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