Norma (Cameron Diaz) and Arthur Lewis (James Marsden) are a typical, happily married suburban couple who have fallen on hard financial times. Things change when a box is delivered to their doorstep by a mysterious man by the name of Arlington Steward (Frank Langella) who presents them with a deal: if they open the box and push the button inside, they will receive one million dollars in cash. But pushing the button will also kill one person in the world — someone they don't know.
Director Richard Kelly brings his first commercially released film to theaters since the success of his directorial debut, "Donnie Darko" (2001), a cult favorite about a boy whose visions of a demonic bunny forewarn him about the end of the world. While "The Box" exhibits a more linear plotline with the clear intent of commercial interest, Kelly retains his eerie, sci-fi style and explores humanity and redemption.
"I think it's a film that kind of puts in the crosshairs the idea of the nuclear family," Kelly said in interview with the Daily. "It's a married couple, under the age of 40 with a single child, and they have a lifestyle that they really can't afford and they're sort of living on credit and they have a mortgage that's beyond their means." Kelly asserts that, although set in 1976, the film resonates with families that are feeling the effects of the current economic downturn.
"The Box" is based on the short story "Button, Button" (1970), written by Richard Matheson, which was also made into an episode of "The Twilight Zone." Kelly read the story as a child and was entranced by the premise. After optioning it from the story's author, Kelly spent years figuring out how to develop the tale into a feature-length thriller.
"There was one line in the short story that just sent my mind racing, and it was when they asked who Mr. Steward worked for," Kelly said. "And that, to me, was just so fascinating, because I had all these questions."
With the help of Diaz and Marsden, Kelly explores a series of social and moral questions throughout the film. After first reading through the script, Diaz immediately signed on to join the cast. "I was a huge fan of Richard's from ‘Donny Darko' and ‘Southland Tales,' and I just really wanted to work with him," Diaz recalled in an interview with the Daily. "I felt that it was very authentic to the stories that he tells. There was a lot of this existential quandary and I just knew that Richard would tell the story uniquely, and I wanted just to be a part of that."
The existential quandaries in "The Box" rely heavily on the one condition of the deal Mr. Steward offers the Lewises: the idea that an unknown someone could die at their hands. This required the film to be set in the ‘70s, because, as Kelly explained, "the concept of someone you don't know, which is inherent to the premise, doesn't really exist anymore. You know, with modern kind[s] of social networking sites and [Google.com] satellite maps and like all of the surveillance technology that we have today . Norma [could] sit down and google the name Arlington Steward … and sit in front of her laptop for half the movie." Bringing abstract ideas such as these to the silver screen is not a new to Kelly, who has never been afraid to delve into twisting plot lines and sci-fi mind-benders.
"The Box" is Kelly's stab at the mainstream thriller genre, although it is evident he has not sacrificed his unique touch. "I love the liberties that sci-fi can take," Diaz said, "because I feel like it's a sort of [an] intellectual, creative brain that kind of involves themselves through those existential questions."
Both Diaz and Marsden agreed that most people today would, indeed, push the button if given the choice. Diaz explained, "I think we're already proving that we're pushing the button more than ever by, you know, taking out credit cards and mortgages and the stock market. Dumping stuff into the ocean. Doing all of these things that we think that we aren't going to have to be responsible for and take responsibility for. Our economy is doing so [poorly] right now based on all the buttons that were pushed over the last few years, so I think it's very relevant."
"The Box" opens in theaters today, Nov. 6.
