Richard Kelly was a film maker everyone was so excited about after the release of Donnie Darko several years ago, he took awhile to follow it up with Southland Tales which it seems is very much a hated film (I did not get around to seeing it), and it has several different cuts. I think that failure really hurt him, and it took awhile longer before he came out with another film. And that film is The Box, which is loosely based upon an episode of The Twilight Zone (and it shows), so did this live up to expectations or was this another failure?
The Box tells the story of a couple in the 70’s, Norma (Cameron Diaz) and Arthur (James Marsden). They are the typical couple, they have a young son and they have their share of financial issues. After some bad news at work, Norma is at home when a mysterious stranger shows up with a very strange offer. He has given them a box and there is a button on the box. Apparently if they press the button within 24hrs they will receive $1,000,000, however if they do that someone unknown to them will die. What will they do?
To say anything more about The Box is to spoil the film, there is a lot going on and as it progresses the direction changes. I have to say the first half of this film had me really engaged. I was into these characters, both Norma and Arthur are likable characters and Cameron Diaz and James Marsden give excellent performances as well. You feel their struggle with their jobs, and the dilemma they face with pressing the button.
However as the film enters the second half it goes towards the more ridiculous side and I really could not get into that. I am not sure what it was exactly, I think Richard Kelly went into territory that perhaps he should not have and I think this would have benefited if he had stayed with the structure he had set up. It isn’t altogether bad, but I think it can easily lose the audience like it did with me. I did however like the morals it brought up, it made you think and I do like films that make me think. The conflicts within the characters really worked quite well, and the questions it raised were also good.
It suffers from the second half as I mentioned, and there are certain things and scenes which I really did not like. It goes to some really dark places and I felt that the characters did not deserve that at all. The stranger character played perfectly by Frank Langella I thought was a strong point in the film but also the developments were a weak part. It does feel like a long episode of The Twilight Zone and I actually would have liked it if it had stayed more grounded, but maybe that is just my personal taste. I don’t think The Box is a failure as a film, it has great ideas but it just loses itself in the second half. I hope if Richard Kelly makes another film, he improves upon this one, he is a really good director here but he tries to do too much with what he has.
Rating:
The Super Network 