The Box

If you know who Richard Kelly is, you’re no doubt a fan of Donnie Darko, which, in my not-so humble opinion, is possibly one of the best films ever made. Sadly, Kelly’s last two films haven’t inspired the same admiration, so I was desperately hoping this one would restore my faith in his writing/directing skills. Wrong.

I get that he likes his convoluted plots and the idea that every action has a tangible consequence, but too many of these elements thrown into one movie can become ridiculously confusing. The premise, although used before, is interesting: A couple receives a box with a button on top of it, and if they push the button they get a million bucks. The catch is that a stranger will die. What would you do?

Well, there would be no movie if they didn’t push it, and so, as you can imagine, all hell breaks loose as karma bites back. If Kelly could just have found more of a balance between confusing and intriguing, like he did in Donnie Darko, this could have been a winner. Unfortunately, it just misses the mark.

Rating: 3 outta 5.