It's a long time ago I have watched Cellular but I never remembered it to be a particularly impressive film. Yet the film has been remade 4 times. Connected is one of the remakes and probably the best of the bunch. Honestly I am really surprised to find out that so many filmmakers were inspired by this film since premise wise it's hardly compelling.
For the most part the original story is in tact. A woman is kidnapped but has no clue why. Apparently her skills equal that of MacGyver's since she is able to fix a broken cell phone and call a random person. This person is played by Louis Koo who is in the biggest adventure of his life. His first reaction is not taking the call seriously and wanting to hang up and forget about it. He has better things to think about. Like getting to his son at the airport as soon as possible. He hasn't been there for him in the way fathers are supposed too so he is committed to show his son that he does love him. However when the kidnapped woman calls again he is made aware that she is in real trouble and needs help.
To be honest, it's this plot element I find real hard to accept since apart from the noises you can't be sure if whatever is going on is real. How many people would take these things seriously in a world where phone pranks like these are pulled constantly? Still, it probably helps that the kidnapped woman has a very beautiful voice and potentially could be hot. Not saying that Bob (Louis Koo) is driven by this notion. But would he be so gun ho to rescue a guy in the same situation? Anyway he tries his best to help out the woman the best way he can. And it's quite the thrill ride from that moment on.
Mind you, I do think that Connected takes a little long to move events along. It easily could have cut like twenty minutes and the film would have been far better. Also because the thriller elements aren't that compelling. It's not like you truly feel you are put on the edge of your seat. I mean even if you haven't seen the original you kinda know how it's going to be play out. This remake easily could have added a twist or two to make things more interesting. To be fair though, this is the type of thriller where twists and turns don't matter that much. Especially since Connected truly excels in the action department and it's depiction of good versus evil. I mean the villains in this film are truly relentless and ruthless. They also always seem to be on top of things while the good guys are often outnumbered. Yet their determination and sacrifice is rewarded which I must say is totally satisfying.
Connected definitely is superior to the original because it does do more with the characters but also isn't afraid to be more action packed. And good action always is welcome.
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