Where was The Cell filmed?

The movie opens with grains of sand dancing in the wind. The camera glides through a vast desert, and the cloud of dust soon reveals a horse and rider on the horizon. We are introduced to Dr. Deane in dreamscape form. Soon, a flickering light catches her attention, and she dismounts the horse to examine it. Looking over her shoulder, an Arabian she saw morphs into a wooden hobby horse. She isn’t surprised and continues walking down the dune. In a valley of dead trees, she meets Baines who is holding a small mirror. Dr. Deane tells him, “Thanks for the horse.” The opening scenes were filmed at the Dead Vlei found within the Namib-Naukluft National Park in the Namib Desert. Located at Erongo, Namibia, the Dead Vlei is a clay pan surrounded by some of the world’s highest dunes. The clay pan formed as an aftermath of flooding in the area. Camel thorn trees grew on the ground, but they died after drought hit the locale. Dunes encroached on the pan and blocked the waters of the Tsauchab River from reaching the area. “The Cell” location has also hosted other productions like “Ghajini” and “The Fall.” Several tour companies offer guided trips to the Namib-Naukluft National Park.

When Deane gets trapped in Stargher’s mind, Novak volunteers to enter the serial killer’s mind so that he can help her regain herself. Kent asks him a series of questions before hooking him up to the machine. Answering no to most of the questions, she tells him that he needs to be truthful even if his partner is in the room. Novak responds, “I am. I’m a pretty boring guy.” Once he enters Stargher’s mind, an almost similar fate befalls him. King Stargher tortures him with Deane watching as one of his servants. After reminding her about her most painful memory, which was losing her younger brother in her college years, Dr. Deane is able to break free of King Stargher’s hold. The laboratory scenes were filmed at the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, San Diego. Gerald M. Edelman, a Nobel Laureate, founded the NSI in 1981. Originally located in New York, the nonprofit research organization moved its operations to San Diego. NSI focuses its efforts on learning more about the brain and using its findings to benefit mankind.

After snapping out of King Stargher’s mind-control state, Dr. Dean stabs him and frees Novak. The pair escapes and while fleeing, Novak catches a glimpse of a rendering of the glass enclosure. He notes that it bears similar insignia to the hoist seen in Stargher’s basement. His partner, Agent Gordon Ramsey (Jake Weber), doesn’t take his word for it at first, saying that he can’t trust what he saw after being put under. Novak is convinced that he saw Hickson alive in the dreamscape. Ramsey responds, “you might have seen Jimmy Hoffa dancing with Timothy Leary, I don’t care.” Investigations reveal that the government tasked Stargher to seal up the property in question after the former owner went bankrupt. Novak races to the location, find Hickson treading in dangerously high waters within the glass tank, and saves her by breaking the glass walls. IMDB lists Taft, California as one of the filming locations of “The Cell.” Resting in the foothills of the San Joaquin Valley, at its southwestern edge, this Kern County city isn’t the most navigable place. Google Map directions guide you to the town’s attractions via dirt roads, and when it rains, most of the roads are rendered impassible. The Temblor Reaction Area, located three miles Southwest, is the highlight of the city.

Novak and Ramsey drop by the Campbell Center to convince Dr. Deane to infiltrate Stargher’s mind. They play a video of one of the serial killer’s victims, and she has several questions and opinions about the matter. She asks how sure they are that Stragher will reveal what they need to know. Novak says that there is a chance that he will confess. Dr. Deane explains that she doesn’t work with violent cases adding, “ I work with children, but even a kid lies. They love it when they get you to believe something that isn’t true. Some sources list Barcelona Pavilion in Barcelona, Spain as the location where they filmed the “The Cell” scene. Lilly Reich and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe designed the Pavilion for the 1929 International Exposition held in Barcelona. It was demolished in 1930 and rebuilt in 1986.

Touched by Young Stargher’s plight, after learning about his background with abuse, Dean reverses the system’s feed. That is after locking her colleagues out, and the feed allows Stargher to enter her mind. The comforting haven she provides a Young Stargher is quickly torn apart by King Stargher's influence. King Stargher, in a scaly snake-man form, invades Deane’s mind but she doesn’t lose control. She beats him to a bloody pulp before eventually impaling him. Young Stargher displays similar injuries, and Dean realizes that killing one means the other dies. Adult Stargher reminds Dean about the bird story and pleads that she saves him. To put the Young Stargher out of his misery, the Adult Stargher carries him into a pool, and tells Dr. Deane, “thank you, Catherine. You did help me. More than you’ll ever know. La Jolla, San Diego is another “The Cell” location listed on IMDB. Beaches and ocean bluffs surround three sides of the hilly, seaside neighborhood. Some of its highlights include the Torrey Pines Golf Course, Museum of Contemporary Art – La Jolla, and the annual La Jolla Concours d'Elegance.

At the Kern County Hospital, Ramsey, Novak, and Teddy Lee (James Gammon) watch as Dr. Milton Reid (Pruitt Taylor Vince) examines Stargher. He says that there is minimal activity in the serial killer’s dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Ramsey asks, “what the hell does that mean?” Dr. Reid responds that Stargher is schizophrenic. Thinking that it paves the way for an insanity defense, Novak pitches a fit. Reid assured him that there won’t be a trial because Stragher is in a coma. The hospital scenes were filmed at the Linda Vista Hospital at 610 S. St. Louis Street, Los Angeles. Built to serve the Santa Fe Railroad employees, the medical facility shut its doors in 1991. It then became a popular filming location and the subject of widespread paranormal investigations. Besides hosting “The Cell” production unit, other films shot at the medical institution include “Fatal Beauty,” “Pearl Harbor,” and “Insidious: Chapter 3.” The hospital exchanged ownership in 2011 and started functioning as a senior living facility.