听 What does it say about a film when you come out going "well, it looked pretty nice"? Not much, in this reviewer's opinion. And unfortunately, this is very much the case with "The Cell", Jennifer Lopez's first bona fide lead role.
She plays Catherine Deane, a child psychotherapist who has perfected a technique for entering comatose kiddies' minds and trying to sort out their problems 'from the inside'. However, she faces a slightly sturdier challenge after a visit from FBI Agent Peter Novak (Vaughn), who comes to her with a big crisis: bonkers serial killer Carl Stargher (D'Onofrio) has become catatonic, only he hasn't yet killed his final victim.
The problem is, he has kidnapped her and left her in a tank that is programmed to fill with water at a certain time. Pete wants Cath to enter Stargher's mind and get him to reveal where the girl is.
So begins a race against time, as Deane interacts with Stargher's subconscious, only it isn't all puppy dogs and ice cream, it's a bizarre world filled with fantastical imagery and terrifying danger.
And therein lies the problem - it's just not terrifying. Or interesting, or anything. In fact, all the actors come second to the visuals, which are piled on courtesy of former promos director Tarsem (whose credits include REM's Losing My Religion).
As a result, Lopez and Co barely register on the acting front, simply drifting through the film in a variety of sumptious get-ups. And while clever effects and grand production design are certainly welcome, it should not be to the detriment of the story.
Which means that despite some epic spectacle, "The Cell" ends up being nothing more than a good-looking, but nonetheless empty vessel.
