THE BOX 1.5****


I went into this movie with low expectations and thus was not surprised when I was underwhelmed. The story is poorly written and the film is misdirected or, I should say, missed-being-directed. The movie is like a race horse that starts off strong but by the middle of the race is lagging behind and finally collapses way before the finish line.

Set in Richmond, Virginia in 1976 ( why 1976 I have no idea ) the story involves a couple ( James Marsden and Cameron Diaz) who have a stranger with a severely deformed face ( Frank Langella) mysteriously show up at their home and offer them a tantalizing but awful proposition. He places before them is a box. Inside this box is a button. If they push this button, two things will occur. One, somewhere, someone they don’t know will instantly die. And two, the young couple will receive $1 million in cash..even tax free.. The couple, who currently find themselves in debt, partly because of an extravagant lifestyle, has 24 hours to decide and agonize they do as to whether or not they should push the button and get the money. However, once this initial conundrum is introduced, the story goes from slightly mysterious, to weird, to way-out-there, to what-in-the-heck is going on. I was left confused and frustrated with the ending…and there is no “feel-good” to it.

I enjoy Cameron Diaz but had a big problem with her attempt at a southern accent…for someone who was living in Richmond, it was too heavy and exaggerated and became a distraction. James Marsden is likable but not believable as a potential astronaut. Frank Langella on the other hand, was very creepy and frightening, and more or less ended up carrying much of the movie.

The movie gets bogged down in so much technical and mysterious exposition that you stop caring. And, much of the time Diaz and Marsden look zonked-out by their weighty dilemmas. What a shame that the pacing couldn’t keep up with some good Sci-Fi ideas…as a result, instead of sweeping you along, The Box just sits there like something unclaimed at lost and found. Damaged goods.

Clark