Directed by:
Richard KellyScreenplay:
Richard KellyCinematography:
Steven PosterCast:
Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella, James Rebhorn, Gillian Jacobs, Celia Weston, Lisa K. Wyatt, Holmes Osborne, Andrew Levitas, John Magaro (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
Push a button and get a cool million bucks. With one simple catch: somebody you don't know will die. That's the "Twilight Zone"-esque scenario facing a young couple who receive the mysterious package on their doorstep. Cameron Diaz and James Marsden star as the husband and wife who find themselves faced with this chilling dilemma that leads them down a sinister trail of horror and deception. (Home Box Office)
(more)Reviews (7)
The Box offers an interesting premise and a unique, intoxicating atmosphere (music, set designs and the overall retro feel of everything from the costumes to the wallpaper). Too bad that the sci-fi plot in the background of the story is so phantasmagorical that you cannot take the film seriously. But it’s worth seeing this anyway as a creative trip, inspiring longer discussions than most unoriginal, formulaic sci-fi thrillers.
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I think Kelly's gonna give me an ulcer. The man is unbelievable. His films have wonderful elements in them. In the case of The Box, it's the box itself and its concept, the elements of sci-fi, and the excellent retro style. However, as you try to piece it together and follow the film, similar feelings arise as with Apocalypse or Donnie Darko. There are too many themes here. Kelly tries to present his ideas as pivotal, but at the same time, he can't avoid B-movie qualities and he lacks perspective. Kelly just doesn't work for me, and The Box is just further proof of that. There are some great ideas, but they lack consistency. The point is good, but unfortunately you also realize how banal it all is.
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Kelly has stopped reveling in his own dubious genius and has come back down to earth to serve up a highly polished and inventive genre hybrid with a faded 1970s atmosphere, moral dilemmas, and a demonic Frank Langella. He doesn't bother with long explanations, he simply reminds us of Kubrick and aims straight for the goal. The ending was excellent.
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I can say for myself that I really enjoyed The Box, and if the director and screenwriter in-one had waited a little longer with the point and the tension had increased, my satisfaction would have been maximum. I realize that even many famous films often don't work at their core. Here, the mysterious atmosphere and omnipresent tension work very well. Actually, the only significant criticism I would have is towards Cameron Diaz's casting. Sweet Cameron, may she not be mad at me, has always been and remains just a typecast actress with limited range. In a film like The Box, the viewer's impression primarily depends on the performances, and it requires someone from among the best character actresses. I don't know, maybe Cameron Diaz was involved in the film as a co-producer, or the production demanded a famous face, but in any case, it was a mistake. Overall impression: 75%.
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If I had put The Box on, watched the first half and fallen asleep, I wouldn't have regretted it. That entire part of the film is great. The plot with the box, the NASA mysteries thrown in, Cameron Diaz, who was once again surprisingly likable, and especially Frank Langella, who makes every second a pleasure. Not to mention the great music! Unfortunately, in the middle of the second half came strong disappointment. The director/screenwriter probably succumbed to the impression that he had to make a simple story as complex as possible, and so he decided to end The Box in an ugly, pretentious (which in this case means "stupid") and ridiculous way. That’s too bad. The Box should have been either a much shorter film, which then would not have been able to cram all the uselessness into it, or it should have been longer, so that the uselessness could be justified and explained. That’s really too bad. But there is one big plus that I can't deny the second overstuffed half - Langella's monologue about boxes.
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