For anyone who has seen Tarsem Singh’s The Cell, one of the most obvious comments will always be about how stunning the film looks.
Released just before Hollywood changed and a mildew felt like it came over the lens of many films, especially horror; The Cell is still a sight to behold 25 years later.
When serial murderer Carl Stargher (Vincent D’Onofrio) falls into a coma with his latest victim still trapped in an unknown location and waiting to die, the FBI turn to psychologist Catherine Deane (Jennifer Lopez) for help.
Using an experimental technology she enters the dark dreamscape of Stargher’s mind, attempting to learn his secrets before it’s too late.
But his unconscious is a twisted nightmare, a labyrinth that threatens to trap her inside his terrifying world forever. To save a life, she’ll have to risk her own.
Arrow Video has given the film the bells and whistles treatment with stacked features, including a feature-length chat with director Singh where he leaves no stone unturned and you really get to understand what he was trying to do with The Cell. He muses about the filmmaking process as well as working with Jennifer Lopez, who was just on the cusp of super stardom as cameras rolled.
Coming from a music video background, it’s a shame we haven’t seen more feature-length features directed by Singh, but you feel in a time of CGI and cheapening films, his visions could be compromised.
DOP Paul Laufer also weighs in on his collaboration with Singh and some of the most visually striking shots of the film plus we have an excellent visual essay from genre expert Alexandra Heller-Nicholas.
If you haven’t seen or haven’t revisited The Cell in some time, this release will get you to fall in love with its dark vision for good.
The Cell is available on Blu-Ray and 4K now from Arrow Video.
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