It’s just like any other normal day. You get the kid off to school exchanging a hug, maybe a kiss, ending things off with a wave goodbye as they speed away on the bus. Heading home, you casually get things prepared to take to work with you, the thoughts racing through your head having to deal with all the day’s priorities in front of you.

Suddenly, your kitchen door is broken in as three men brazenly make their way into your home shattering the calm of the peaceful sunny morning. Shooting the housekeeper, they take you hostage, throwing you like a rag doll into a dilapidated attic space threatening yours and the life of your son if you don’t tell them where ‘it’ is. But you don’t know where ‘it’ is, let alone what the item is in the first place. Sneering at you, the thugs head back out the door to snag your child, leaving you alone with nothing more than a shattered telephone and your own fears for company. What would you do?

That’s exactly the scenario faced by high school science teacher Jessica Martin (Kim Basinger, “The Door in the Floor”), and in a feat of ledger main that would make McGyver proud, she pieces together the smashed telephone using bits of receiver and wire managing a single phone call. Hoping for the best, what she gets is self-centered California dude Ryan (Chris Evans, “The Perfect Score”), a carefree young man who suddenly finds himself Jessica’s last – and only – hope. Thrust into a world of corruption and murder, Ryan has to piece together the identities of the faceless woman’s abductors while also trying to ascertain exactly what it is they are after, all while trying to keep their tenuous cell phone connection, and only point of contact, alive.

Much like writer Larry Cohen’s other telephone thriller, “Cellular” is an exuberantly silly, more than a bit over-the-top B-movie thriller told with far more flair than it probably deserves. While not as grimy or seedy as that previous schlocker starring Colin Farell, this is still a perversely exciting thrill-ride, directed with abundant energy by David R. Ellis (“Final Destination 2”). With a cast that includes Oscar-winner Basinger, nominee William H. Macy (“Fargo”), sexy bad-boy Jason Statham (“The Italian Job”) and perennially jovial character actor Noah Emmerich (“The Truman Show”), Ellis has cast his picture exceedingly well. Thanks to them, even when the movie goes a bit beyond silly it still remains engaging, and I can’t imagine that would even remotely be the case without this talented group in front of the camera.

And boy does this movie need it. This isn’t a thriller filled with the brightest bulbs in the deck, and some of Mrs. Martin’s technological abilities with a telephone certainly defy belief. Also, while Cohen’s story and newcomer Chris Morgan’s screenplay are certainly efficient, they certainly don’t do anything to hold their surprises until the third act. In fact, one of the chief defects of “Cellular” isn’t that it’s familiar or easy to predict the twists and turns, it is that Ellis and Morgan are so struck on telegraphing them. While everyone in the audience knows one of the supposed ‘good guys’ is going turn out to be the evil ringleader, why pointlessly show the identity of this villain barely two-thirds of the way through?

Still, there is an awful lot to like. From Basinger’s harried lead performance to Macey’s sublime, mensch-like schlepping as a retiring officer smelling things amiss to Statham’s steely aggressiveness as the main heavy, this is one flick not hurting for actor’s giving their all. Sure, the former “L.A. Confidential” isn’t very believable as a scientific mastermind, but she sure bleeds beautifully and packs a fiery wallop as her character gears up to protect her family. And while Macey is certainly slumming, he’s having an awfully good time doing it, vigorously throwing himself around and firing off guns like he’s a regular Sylvester Stallone.

Another thing I like is the fact that Ryan is, despite all his attempts otherwise, a rather well meaning clod. In nearly every attempt to save Jessica or a member of her family, he fails miserably to keep them from capture or harm. There is an honest verisimilitude to his actions, however, that’s really endearing, so when the character ultimately does become heroic it is a heroism justly earned. The only problem, though, is that Evans isn’t much of a presence in the role. Not that there is much in the way of depth to character as written but, even so, the actor doesn’t add anything to the part doing little to make him nothing else but a bland surfer dude looking for the next score.