Now In Theaters - The Box

I wasn't very excited to see this one, but there just isn't a lot of choices out there right now. This one definitely had the necessary star power to make good things happen. With a cast boasting Cameron Diaz, James Marsden (Cyclops from the 'X-Men' franchise) and Frank Langella (most recently Richard Nixon in 'Frost/Nixon') and directed/written by the man who gave us 'Donnie Darko'... you would think you have a formula for success on your hands. Well sadly, the cast was the only thing exciting about this one.

The story centers around a married couple in the mid 1970's. Both husband and wife are working full time, yet the couple is still making it. The husband, Arthur, is working at NASA and aspiring to be an astronaut. While the wife, Norma, is a teacher at the school their son attends. Amidst their financial struggles, the family receives a very peculiar package one morning. The package contains a box with a large red button. Later in our story, a very mysterious visitor (Langella) explains that the the couple will be paid a sum of one million dollars if one of them pushes the red button. The bad news... someone on earth, will die.

An interesting dilemma for the family that is living check to check. And this is where our movie turns drastically downhill. The entire film drug on very slowly. There was never a high point, or "climax" so to speak. There are more "what the heck is going on right now?" moments and often times the movie never connects loose ends. I remember being a young boy and watching 'The Pelican Brief' for the first time. I knew that after I watched it the first time that I would have see it again in order to fully understand it. After seeing this, I know for a 100% fact that I could watch it 5 more times and still not quite get it. And I know I'm not alone... as I stood outside the theater looking over the poster for the upcoming 'Shutter Island' an older gentleman walked by me shaking his head and said, "I have no idea what I just saw."

I honestly don't have a single good thing to say about this movie. It was slow, boring and just did not close the book on too many open subjects once the credits began to roll. There was no laughter, there was no action... why do we spend our hard earned dollars to be entertained? Oh I know, we are also entertained by suspense and mystery. I guess you would have to file this one under mystery, but I'm sorry, it just does NOT capture your interest. I got a mystery for you... how is it that a couple that is supposed to be struggling check to check has a nice new shiny Corvette and springs for a sitter to watch their son as they are out on the town catching shows and such? I have to give this one about a 4 out of 10. If this is your only choice of something to watch in the theaters, make it a Redbox night instead. Instead of spending 20+ bucks on this, buy 'Star Trek' when it comes out on DVD next week. LOL