The Box

I read the original Richard Matheson short story (Button, Button) that this movie is based on when it was first published in the June 1970 Playboy Magazine. The short story was a relatively simple morality tale. Usually I am not one to compare source material with movies. They are totally separate animals and frequently the movie version is a big improvement on the original material.

In this case, the two cannot even be compared - even the plot is barely recognizable in the movie version. That would be fine if the movie plot were an improvement. Instead we have a mush mash of hints, bloody noses and awkward special effects.

I guess it is still a morality tale, but an overly complicated one. The performers do the best they can.

The movie that ended the career of the director Richard Kelly. It was never a really promising career, Donnie Darko must have been a stroke of luck. The original Twilight Zone episode The Box was way better and all the additional material in this movie does not improve on it, with subplots that don't resolve into anything. The script is just poorly written, with a lot of illogical situations and thin characters. The movie overall is not horrible, just don't have any high expectations from it.

The creator of Donnie Darko brings you a twilight zone themed tale of the oddest fashion. The film centers on a middle aged young couple living paycheck to paycheck in 1976. One day a mysterious box appears with a red button. Later on that day a spooky gentleman shows up and tells them that they have the choice to press the button and receive a million dollars but someone they don't know will die. It's a disturbing and provocative question suspensefully outlined in the trailer and TV spots. But let it be known that you just don't know what your in for until you see it. At times pretentious and a bit melodramatic the film is ultimately effective because of it's good performances and intriguing subject matter. It would be unfair to ruin any of the plot twists for you but lets just say the film will deliver on the aspects you expect it to and not completely fulfill others it begins to outline. There's a lot of apparent symbolism and subtext in the film which is both interesting and annoying as it wasn't so evident in his other superior film Donnie Darko. There isn't too much more to say without ruining the film for you. it's meant to inspire lots of cafe chatter afterwards. However, i'd also like to say It's shot well and has an appropriately aged look to it and it's worth a watch. Check it out.

It seems that most either hate or love this film with nothing in between. I have seen people say it was "hateful" or "they didn't understand the ending" I will simply say, a number of people just did not understand the film at all.

I personally thought it was better than Donnie Darko, as Kelly went out of his way to be weird for the sake of it in that film. This seemingly had a bit more meaning behind it.

To those who found the script hateful, it simply isn't do not allow that opinion to keep you from watching this movie. If anything the script shows you that greed and the error of our ways do have consequences and could harm those we love. That isn't hateful, but more of a message alerting us that our every decision is indeed important.

Do not be scared away by those who ranked the film at four and below, this is a movie for those who want to be challenged to think outside the normal boundaries of everyday thought. If you're up to that challenge it's worth seeing, although certain areas could be done better.

It was nice to see Cameron do a serious role, but she did seem at times rusty at portraying some of the emotions needed for such a role. At others she nailed what she needed to deliver. James Mardsen (Arthur Lewis) and Frank Langella (Arlington Steward) both delivered consistent performances.

Richard Kelly is one of my personal favorite directors. I have only seen his two films, Donnie Darko and Southland Tales. The first is a Masterpiece, and a film like no other, and has fortunately gathered a strong cult following. Southland Tales is the one that is very underrated, perhaps the most unique film of this decade, even more so than Donnie, and deserves a larger fanbase. This is Kelly's 3rd film that I watched, and he does not disappoint. When I originally heard he was making The Box, based on the Twilight Zone episode, I got nervous. Both of his previous films flopped big time, but I still did not want him to make a film too mainstream. After The Box, I think it is impossible for him to ever make a mainstream film. The Box has amazing atmosphere and has very illusionary images and a tense tone to it. Richard Kelly's screenplay is nothing short of original, and even though he made it based on the Twilight Zone, he still added his mark on it. Kelly has always had so many ideas to share, and sometimes, his film's flaws is that they have so much to say. Southland Tales was criticized for that, but I loved it, flaws and all. The same for The Box. Although The Box is not as confusing or as hard-to-categorize as Southland Tales, it does have it's own ideas. This is very much a morality tale, and I thought it made some very interesting points. The screenplay has flaws, and so does the direction. But the flaws is what makes a Richard Kelly film feel special, as was the case with both his previous films, and that is the case for The Box.

The performances from James Marsden and Cameron Diaz are superb. Marsden is very good, but Diaz is the one who steals the show, surprisingly. I never have respected Diaz as an actress before, and when I heard her southern accent in the trailer I got very worried. But her accent, and her performance, elevate the film even more, and she was very strong. I should now give her the credit she deserves. Frank Langella is very creepy and mysterious, and his character has classic Kelly printed all over it. The cinematography is great. The music score, although by itself is great, was used too loud and too dramatized in some scenes, and was a distraction. But overall, The Box is another very interesting and very dreamy film from Richard Kelly, one that as years go by, will be sitting comfortably with Donnie Darko and Southland Tales on my DVD shelf.