the box Plot summary (with possible spoilers): Norma (played by Cameron Diaz) and Arthur Lewis (James Marsden) are a middle-class couple living in Richmond, VA in the year 1976. In the pre-dawn hours one morning, Norma is awakened by the sound of the doorbell. She reaches the door just in time to see a car driving away. Whoever had been there left a package on the porch, which Norma brings inside.

It’s a box with a card that says Mr. Steward will come at 5pm. Neither Norma nor Arthur know a Mr. Steward, but they figure the box has something to do with an upcoming wedding. Perhaps it’s a bridesmaid gift or whatever. The rest of the day, Norma and Arthur just go about their regular jobs (she as a private school teacher, he as a NASA engineer), not giving much thought to the box. Then at 5pm, Mr. Steward (Frank Langella) arrives, as promised.

Mr. Steward hands over a key and explains the purpose of the box to Norma. With the key, Norma can open the glass dome at the top of the box to reveal the plunger button. If she pushes the button, she will receive $1 million in cash (tax-free) — but the catch is that someone she doesn’t know will die. Norma is shocked by this, and later discusses the situation with Arthur. He dismantles the box, sees that there’s no wiring or tracking device of any kind, and passes the whole thing off as a hoax. Norma pushes the plunger.

Mr. Steward arrives the next day with the million dollars, saying that the box will be reprogrammed and presented to another couple — one that the Lewis’s do not know. When Arthur and Norma realize this means they (or their son) could be the ones to die next, they panic and try to return the money, but to no avail.

The rest of the film then shows Norma and Arthur trying to figure out who Mr. Steward is and what he represents. Supernatural elements are introduced, including portals that lead to either eternal damnation or salvation. By the end, the Lewis’s are faced with an impossible decision, as their son is deliberately struck deaf and blind by Steward.

My Reaction: I didn’t like it. After reading a bit more about this film, I learned that it was based off a short story, which was subsequently turned into a Twilight Zone episode. Now I can see how this would be an exciting story for those types of media, but there simply wasn’t enough meat to warrant making an entire movie out of this.

The first 15 minutes were good, as Norma and Arthur wrestled with the idea of pushing the button. They obviously didn’t really think Mr. Steward was serious about someone dying, so I don’t consider them greedy or anything. Arthur opened the box and didn’t think it was connected to anything. Can’t really blame them for just pushing the button out of exasperation or whatever.

The last 15 minutes of the film were good, too. I expected one of them to die because of Steward’s foreshadowing early on, but I wasn’t prepared for the setup. Can you imagine having to choose between killing your wife or forcing your son to live the remainder of his life deaf and blind? Quite a dilemma, and I think Arthur solved it the way most people would.

Those parts were interesting, as I said. But the middle? I kind of fell asleep, so I didn’t get the whole story about Steward’s background. I doubt if it would have made much difference, though. Did the screenwriters adequately explain Steward’s motives, the zombies in the library, or the portals? Probably not.

Overall, I was disappointed by The Box. Interesting premise and conclusion, but not enough substance to fill in an hour and forty minutes of screen time. I give this film 4 stars out of 10.