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The Box, directed by Richard “Donnie Darko” Kelly, is adapted from short story Button Button by Richard Matheson and was also adapted for an episode of 1980s sci-fi series The Twilight Zone. All this should tell you that the world you are about to enter will be unpredictable and odd.
Odd is a good word to describe The Box - not bizarre, not weird, just odd. There is a distinct feeling throughout the film that all is not right, from the moment Norma (Cameron Diaz) limps downstairs to answer the doorbell at 5:45am to find a package on her doorstep. Inside the package is a box with an ominous-looking red button, the purpose of which is later explained by one Arlington Steward (Frank Langella), a man with half of his face burned away. He tells Norma and her husband Arthur (James Marsden) that if they push the button two things will happen: they will receive one million dollars, and someone whom they don’t know will die.
This high-concept idea probably worked quite well as 40-something minute TV episode, but in expanding the story to make a feature-length film the plot becomes somewhat far-fetched and is never properly explained. While Donnie Darko’s conclusion might not have made sense initially, when you work back through the film all the pieces fall into place. The Box, however, offers no real clues that you can piece together to make it comprehensible. You might get the basic idea, but the over-arching conspiracy story ends up being irrelevant as Kelly mainly focuses on Norma and Arthur.
The film does a lot better in these sections, examining Norma and Arthur’s relationship as they attempt to deal with the situation in which they find themselves. It’s no spoiler to say that they do push the button, but the consequences of this are enough to push any couple to the brink. These are two educated, level-headed people (Norma is a schoolteacher, and Arthur works for NASA), and yet they are still sucked into the mystery surrounding the box.
Cameron Diaz is able to stretch herself in this role and is probably the best thing about the film. She manages to sustain a state of anxiety throughout without becoming hysterical. James Marsden sheds his cheery, happy persona from Hairspray and Enchanted and grows into a more mature character - a man with worries and responsibilities; and Frank Langella delivers as usual as the mysterious Arlington Steward, who remains pleasant and approachable throughout, despite being the villain of the piece.
Set in the 1970s, the film often feels like a horror/conspiracy thriller from that era as the story develops. The period detail is all there without being distracting, although there is never the sense that this could have been set in the present day. There are some genuine scares and the film remains distinctly creepy from start to finish. Its ending, however, will leave you frustrated and not exactly jumping for joy, despite the premise promising so much more.
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