The Box

Written and directed by Richard Kelly, director of my favorite movie Donnie Darko, The Box is an action-packed thrill ride that will make complete sense to some people and no sense to others. The Box tells the story of a young couple who are going through a rough patch financially. Then, early one morning, a strange box arrives on their doorstep. Later that day a man shows up at their house and tells them that if they press a button located on top of the box then they will receive one million dollars, but someone, who they don't know, will die. They are given 24 hours to make their decision and *SPOILER ALERT* they eventually decide to go ahead and push the button. The rest of the movie goes on the show the consequences of their actions. By pushing the button, they opened the door to a number of strange and dangerous encounters with employees of the man who delivered the box.
The Box markets itself as a nice psychological thriller. However, as the movie continues it becomes more and more science fiction. And I'm not complaining. Without the sci-fi influences in the plot, it would have been a cookie-cutter drama about a young couple facing hardships, but by having alien encounters and sci-fi references the movie becomes so unique it will be remembered for years to come.

The acting wasn't the best I've ever seen, but it wasn't bad at all. Cameron Diaz and James Marsden both perform beautifully. There is a real chemistry between the two on film and they both portray the fear and confusion of the characters realistically. However, the acting was nothing special. And the other actors were not as convincing as these two. Most of the performances given by the actors with smaller parts seemed either unrealistic or very forced.

The Box was not an amazing movie, but it was better than I expected. Donnie Darko is the best science fiction movie I have ever seen, but I still didn't think that this movie could possibly live up to it. And I was right, it didn't. But it still is worth the watch. There were a few pretty disturbing parts and even a few parts that may make a few of you jump out of your seats. However, my favorite thing about the movie has nothing do with the acting or even the plot. My favorite thing about the movie was it's portrayal of the famous Arthur C. Clarke quote: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

-H