The Box

The three greats of televised paranormal - The X-files, The Twilight Zone, and The Outer Limits - all have a particular angle from which they often come.  The X-files often deals with the struggle of science vs. faith.  The Twilight Zone will toss ordinary people into bizarre situations, many times against their will, and in fact, the same story was adapted for an episode in the 80's.  The Outer Limits is many times fixed on the theme of technology, or something similar, coming back to bite you in the end.  As a full length film, The Box, starring Cameron Diaz and James Marsden, throws these three television shows into a Blendtec, adds the time requirements of a full length feature, and asks the age old question of "will it blend?"  The answer is, some of the time.

Based on the short story Button Button by Richard Matheson, The Box revolves around a young couple, Norma (Diaz) and Arthur (Marsden) who are apparently in financial woes even though Arthur works for NASA and drives a Corvette.  Ok, we'll go with it.  One day, a mysterious box shows up on their doorstep, followed by a visit from an even more mysterious man with half a face, Mr. Steward (Frank Langella).  Steward proceeds to put forth a proposal - open the box and press the button contained therein and receive one million dollars (even more money in the 70's when this movie takes place).  The one catch is that someone, somewhere, that they don't know, will die.  They have 24 hours to decide and may tell no one.  After much deliberation, Norma hits the button, whereupon Steward shows up with the cash and their lives spin out of control as they find themselves wrapped up in something much bigger than they could have imagined and realize that their own lives may now be on the line.

The premise of the film is what intrigued me.  The unusual ethical decision surrounded by the apparently paranormal quickly gives way to the increasingly bizarre.  The story moves quickly, adding layer upon layer to the story, though a few of the layers taste a bit like herring on an otherwise well constructed sandwich.  For a sci-fi thriller, this film was constructed on a relatively modest budget and shows quite painfully in the few sequences where CG is used.  While the story is quite compelling and doesn't need many effects to be so, the instances where it does feel, sadly, jarring.  The acting is not award worthy, but certainly average or above, and the tension never gives up, though it never quite builds to its full potential either.

Ultimately, this is a tale of morality and consequence, with ending I found both extremely satisfying as well as disappointing.  I would have liked to see a different decision made on the part Arthur and Norma, but the result of the decision was decidedly delicious.  I don't think Matheson has much faith in humanity.

The story is deliberately ambiguous about some things, perhaps a bit too much so in that there are some answers not given that should have been.  I get the feeling that there are no answers, which is why they weren't given.  It was a confusing ride that was a little wet and messy here and there, but you know what?  I enjoyed the ride anyway.  Not perfect, but if you like any of the television shows mentioned at the beginning of the review, I can almost guarantee that you will enjoy this tale.

**** (4/5 stars)