The Box (2009) Movie Review, Trailer, Film Still and Poster

USA 2009
Director: Richard Kelly
Cast: Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella, Sam Oz Stone, James Rebhorn, Deborah Rush
Rating: PG-13
Release Date: 6 November 2009
Running Time: 1 hour 55 mins 40 secs

The Movie Review

The Box film still 1


THE BOX
Storyline:
Cast:
Ending:
Overall:

Back in elementary school, when going home from school, I remember my friend asked me this horribly intriguing question "Would you kill a man, if it could eradicate the famine and poverty of 100 people?" I instantly said "No!". And then he asked again "What if 10 million people...?", Me and my other friends left thinking and wondering of what each of us would do. The basic premise of this sci-fi/thriller movie is 99% similar. A movie apparently based on a short story published in 1970 titled "Button, Button" by Richard Matheson. I guess that friend of mine probably had heard about this short story from his family. Anyhow, this premise really hooked me up and I was glad that The Box did not disappoint. In fact, this is a very powerful and strong science fiction movie.

Virginia, 1976. A happily married couple with one child, Arthur (James Marsden) and Norma Lewis (Cameron Diaz) is surprised one morning when somebody drops a mysterious box with a button on top of it in front of their home. Their bewilderment is escalated when a man by the name of Arlington Steward (Frank Langella) visits their house to offer them a deal. Leave the box be to be retrieved the next day or push the button and get 1 million dollars. However by pushing the button, someone somewhere they don't know will die. Arthur who's busy trying to be an Astronaut at NASA and Norma who works as teacher dismiss this offer at first thinking that it's only a prank, but they are indeed having a big financial problem. In 24 hours they have to make a decision. What would they do...?

This movie my friend is one heckuva science fiction thriller. Where respectively the word science, fiction and thriller really rings out loud. Knowing the author of the original story, Richard Matheson, is not very surprising since he was also the man behind such great sci-fi stories like I am Legend and the Last Man on Earth. But surely the story alone is not sufficient without the help of other aspects in filmmaking. One thing obvious is that James Marsden and Cameron Diaz perform really awesome and touching. The ending scene is very strong and will leave you thinking. You can feel all emotion coming out from James and Cameron, while Frank Langella oozes the cold, mysterious personality perfectly. There is something menacing but friendly about his character. The editing is great, although not perfect. The revelation may disappoint the more religious viewers and that's why I said before that "Fiction" is a strong aspect. The story moves on in rather slow pacing and I usually against that but I was very hooked up with the mystery. What's the purpose of all the button-pushing? Who is Arlington Steward really?

Almost everything is perfect, the set that resembles the 70's era with all the furniture and decoration. The colour play and not to be forgotten the eerie musical score. Hmmm.... this is a great movie for sure. Really recommended for fellow moviegoers who's in need of a high-quality sci-fi flick and don't mind to work their brains. If you're offered to make that decision what would you do? Enjoy the movie and see how confused the characters are...

> Other great 2009 Science Fiction movies: The Road (2009) and the perfect movie set in South Africa, District 9 (2009).