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32-478: Tarsem Singh Dhandwar (born 26 May 1961), known professionally as Tarsem , is an Indian director who has worked on films, music videos, and commercials. He directed The Cell (2000), The Fall (2006, also screenwriter and producer), Immortals (2011), Mirror Mirror (2012), Self/less (2015), and Dear Jassi (2023). Tarsem was born in Jalandhar , Punjab to a Punjabi Sikh family. His father

64-474: A bogeyman -like alter ego whom Deane avoids. Despite Deane's lack of progress, West and Kent reject Deane's suggestion to reverse the feed to bring Baines into her mind, fearing the consequences of his experiencing an unfamiliar world. Serial killer Carl Rudolph Stargher traps his victims in a cell-like glass enclosure that slowly fills with water by means of an automatic timer, then uses a hoist in his basement to suspend himself above their bodies while watching

96-450: A mercy killing to prevent its torture at his father's hands. King Stargher intrudes as a scaly snake-man , but this time, Deane is in control and she beats him to a bloody pulp before impaling him with a sword. However, Young Stargher exhibits the same injuries as King Stargher, and killing either manifestation kills Stargher. Adult Stargher reminds her of the story of the bird and implores her to "save" him. Deane carries Young Stargher into

128-470: A confused storyline that undermines the movie's inventive aesthetic." Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 40 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "C+" on scale of A to F. One of the most positive reviews came from Roger Ebert , who awarded the film four stars out of four, writing: "For all of its visual pyrotechnics , it's also

160-472: A film so original." James Berardinelli gave the film three stars out of four, writing: " The Cell becomes the first serial killer feature in a long time to take the genre in a new direction. Not only does it defy formulaic expectations, but it challenges the viewer to think and consider the horrors that can turn an ordinary child into an inhuman monster. There are no easy answers, and The Cell doesn't pretend to offer any. Instead, Singh presents audiences with

192-513: A pool, putting him out of his misery as Stargher dies in the real world. In the aftermath, Deane and Novak meet outside of Stargher's house. The FBI has officially excluded the mind technology from their inquiry and Deane has gained approval to use the reverse feed on Edward Baines. Inside the paradise of Deane's mindscape, Baines walks to embrace Deane. The scene where the Special Agents are trying to convince Dr. Catherine Deane to enter

224-405: A scene, Jennifer Lopez's character falls asleep watching a film; the film is Fantastic Planet (1973). In the scene where Catherine talks with Carl while he is "cleaning" his first victim, the scenery resembles the music video "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M. The scene where Peter Novak first enters the mind of Carl Stargher, and is confronted by three women with open mouths to the sky, is based on

256-459: A serial killer who murders his victims, and then brings them back to life, over and over again until they beg to die. Maya ( Tessie Santiago ) is a psychic investigator and surviving victim of The Cusp, whose abilities developed after spending a year in a coma. Maya must use her powers to travel into the mind of the killer unprotected, in order to save his latest victim. Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling The competitive category

288-404: A shortlist of titles is chosen by the makeup branch's executive committee and clips are screened by the members of the branch at an annual "bake-off." After only two films were shortlisted in 2002, rules were installed requiring that seven finalists be chosen each year with the top three becoming nominees. Beginning in 2020, the shortlist expanded from seven finalists to ten. In 2012, the category

320-453: A story where we care about the characters; there's a lot at stake at the end, and we're involved. I know people who hate it, finding it pretentious or unrestrained; I think it's one of the best films of the year." Ebert later placed the film on his list of "The Best 10 Movies of 2000", writing: "Tarsem, the director, is a visual virtuoso who juggles his storylines effortlessly; it's dazzling, the way he blends so many notes, styles and genres into

352-484: Is hired to conduct an experimental virtual reality treatment for coma patients: a "Neurological Cartography and Synaptic Transfer System" device managed by doctors Henry West and Miriam Kent that allows her to enter a comatose mind and attempt to coax them into consciousness. The technology is funded by the parents of her patient, Edward Baines, a young boy left comatose by a viral infection that causes an unusual form of schizophrenia . Baines's progress has been hampered by

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384-474: Is in Stargher's mind. Deane breaks free of Stargher's hold and stabs King Stargher to free Novak. During their escape, Novak sees a version of the glass enclosure with the same insignia as the hoist in Stargher's basement. Novak's team discovers that after the hoist's previous owner went bankrupt, the government hired Stargher to seal up his property. Novak races to the property and finds Hickson treading water in

416-470: Is integrated into Stargher's mindscape will inflict neurological damage on her real body. Novak volunteers to enter Stargher's mind to make Deane remember herself. Inside Stargher's mind, Novak is captured and subjected to King Stargher's torture while Deane looks on as Stargher's servant. Novak reminds Deane of a painful memory of her younger brother who died after a six-month coma due to a car accident during her college years to reawaken her awareness that she

448-517: The Chicago Reader remarked, "There's almost no plot here and even less character—just a lot of pretexts for S&M imagery, Catholic decor, gobs of gore, and the usual designer schizophrenia ." William Thomas of Empire gave the film two stars out of five, stating that "at times beautiful and always disturbing, this is strangely devoid of meaning." A sequel was released direct to DVD on June 16, 2009. The story centers on The Cusp,

480-539: The Brothers Quay . Tarsem—who began his career directing music videos such as En Vogue 's "Hold On" and R.E.M. 's " Losing My Religion "—drew upon such imagery for Stargher's dream sequences. In particular, it has been speculated that he was influenced by videos directed by Mark Romanek , such as " Closer " and " The Perfect Drug " by Nine Inch Nails , " Bedtime Story " by Madonna , and the many videos that Floria Sigismondi directed for Marilyn Manson . During

512-498: The adoption of US Paralympian Jessica Long won significant critical acclaim. He also directed the Microsoft Windows 11 commercial Journey which featured the song 'Brings You Closer to What You Love' by Odessa , an appearance by Master Chief from Halo (Xbox) and dancers emerging through a painting by Clifford Bailey. His 2023 film Dear Jassi premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival , where it

544-435: The appearance and effect of the characters". In the following table, the years are listed as per Academy convention, and generally correspond to the year of film release ; the ceremonies are always held the following year. Films in dark blue background have received a Special/Honorary Award ; those in yellow background have won a regular Academy Award of Merit. Finalists for Best Makeup & Hairstyling are selected by

576-448: The enclosure and breathing through a pipe. Novak breaks the glass wall and rescues Hickson. Deane, now sympathetic to Young Stargher, locks her colleagues out and reverses the feed of the device to pull Stargher's mind into her own. She presents a comforting paradise to Young Stargher, but he knows it is only a temporary reprieve from King Stargher. He shifts to Adult Stargher to relate a childhood story of when he drowned an injured bird as

608-416: The film as well, writing: "When I go to a serial-killer flick, I don't want to see the serial killer (or even his inner child) coddled and empathized with and forgiven. I want to see him shot, stabbed, impaled, eviscerated, and finally engulfed—shrieking—in flames. The Cell serves up some of the most gruesomely misogynistic imagery in years, then ends with a bid for understanding." Jonathan Rosenbaum of

640-417: The hands of his sadistic father. Deane nurtures Young Stargher in hopes of obtaining Hickson's location, but she is thwarted by another manifestation: King Stargher, a demonic idealization of his murderous side that dominates the dreamscape. King Stargher torments Deane until she forgets the world is not real . Dr. West discovers this while monitoring Deane's vitals. He warns that what happens to Deane while she

672-585: The killer's mind was recorded at the Barcelona Pavilion in Barcelona, Spain. Some of the scenes in The Cell are inspired by works of art. A scene in which a horse is split into sections by falling glass panels was inspired by the works of British artist Damien Hirst . The film also includes scenes based on the work of other late 20th century artists, including Odd Nerdrum , H. R. Giger and

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704-442: The latter of which won Best Music Video, Short Form at the 1992 Grammy Awards . He has directed commercials for brands such as Nike and Coca-Cola . Tarsem's feature film directorial debut was The Cell (2000), starring Jennifer Lopez . In 2003, Tarsem directed one of the most elaborate Pepsi commercials to date. It combined a gladiator theme with Queen 's " We Will Rock You ". The commercial starred Enrique Iglesias in

736-504: The opportunity to go on a harrowing journey. For those who are up to the challenge, it's worth spending time in The Cell ." Peter Travers from Rolling Stone wrote that "Tarsem uses the dramatically shallow plot to create a dream world densely packed with images of beauty and terror that cling to the memory even if you don't want them to." Conversely, Stephen Hunter of The Washington Post called it "contrived", "arbitrary", and "overdrawn". Slate ' s David Edelstein panned

768-463: The painting Dawn by Norwegian painter Odd Nerdrum . The scene when Catherine is chasing Carl through a stone hallway, right before she enters the room with the horse, is based on the H. R. Giger painting "Schacht". A psychiatrist entering the dreams of an insane patient in order to take control of the dreams and so to cure the patient's mind (this being a very risky attempt, because the insanity may prevail during such "neuro-participatory therapy")

800-642: The recorded video of their deaths. He succumbs to the same schizophrenic illness and falls into a coma just as the FBI identifies him, leaving them without any leads as to the location of his latest victim, Julia Hickson. After learning of this experimental technology, Agent Peter Novak persuades Deane to enter Stargher's mind and discover Hickson's location. Deane enters the dark dreamscape of Stargher's twisted psyche, filled with doll-like versions of his victims. Stargher's innocent side manifests as Young Stargher and leads Deane through his memories of abuse he suffered at

832-814: The version of the commercial aired in Europe and North America and Amr Diab in the version aired in the Arab world. Tarsem's second film, The Fall , debuted at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival and was released in theatres in the United States in 2008. His third film was 2011's Immortals . He directed an adaptation of the Brothers Grimm story of " Snow White ", called Mirror Mirror (2012). In 2020, Tarsem made his return to music videos with Lady Gaga 's single " 911 ", his first in 26 years. In 2021, his Super Bowl ad for Toyota featuring

864-461: The visuals, direction, make-up, costumes and D'Onofrio's performance, while criticizing the plot, an emphasis on style rather than substance, and masochistic creation. Despite the critical reception, the film was a box office success, grossing over $ 104 million against a $ 33 million budget, and it earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Makeup . Child psychologist Catherine Deane

896-731: Was an aircraft engineer. He attended Bishop Cotton School in Shimla , Hans Raj College in Delhi , and is a graduate of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena , California. Singh's classmates included future Hollywood Directors Michael Bay and Zack Snyder . Singh also acted in the student films of Bay and Snyder. Tarsem began his career by directing music videos, including those of " Hold On " by En Vogue , " Sweet Lullaby " by Deep Forest and R.E.M. 's " Losing My Religion ",

928-508: Was created in 1981 as the Academy Award for Best Makeup , after the academy received complaints that the makeup work in The Elephant Man (1980) was not being honored. Although no award was given to The Elephant Man , an entire category dedicated to honoring makeup effects in film was created for subsequent ceremonies. Previously, makeup artists were only eligible for special achievement awards for their work. Ahead of nominations,

960-525: Was described in the novella He Who Shapes (1965) by Roger Zelazny , but the film Dreamscape (1984), subsequently developed from Zelazny's basic idea, had a completely different plot. Critical reaction to The Cell has been mixed. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , the film holds an approval rating of 45% based on 166 reviews, with an average rating of 5.6/10. The website's critics consensus reads, " The Cell offers disturbing, stunning eye candy, but its visual pleasures are no match for

992-403: Was given its current name for use in the 85th Academy Awards and onward. Makeup artist Rick Baker holds the record for both most wins (7) and most nominations (11) for this award. Before 1981, Special Achievement Oscars were twice awarded to makeup artists for their work on a specific film: Starting in 1993, the award is to be shared with hairstylists if hair effects "contribute greatly to

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1024-575: Was the winner of the Platform Prize . The Cell (film) The Cell is a 2000 science fiction psychological horror film directed by Tarsem Singh in his directorial debut , and starring Jennifer Lopez , Vince Vaughn , and Vincent D'Onofrio . The film follows scientists as they use experimental technology to enter the mind of a comatose serial killer in order to locate where he has hidden his latest kidnap victim. The film received mixed reviews upon its release, with critics praising

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