The Box

Released: 2009

MPAA rating: R

Running time: 1:55

The award for "Movie that falls miles short of an excellent concept" goes to "The Box".  The concept of this movie is nothing short of brilliant: A mysterious man (Frank Langella) shows up at the door of a struggling couple bearing a box with nothing but a button.  His proposal:  Push this button, someone you do not know will die and you will be paid one million dollars.  The movie is set in the 1970s, so that million is that much more tempting.  They have 24 hours to consider the offer, after which the offer is rescinded and will be made to someone else.  This concept is just so good that I had to check this movie out, despite horrendous reviews.   Unfortunately, it turns out that so many critics were not wrong.  After a decent build-up and a fairly solid 30 minutes, the movie becomes a complete mess with secret government projects, alien experiments and special effects just for the sake of having special effects.  The plot takes so many twists and turns, which is usually a good thing, but in this case it just seemed like they had no idea where to go with the story.  I learned later that this was originally based on a "Twilight Zone" episode, "Button, Button" and it appears the filmmakers forgot that the brilliance of "The Twilight Zone" was its simplicity.  Believe the hype:  This movie was just not good.

Grade: D-

Trailer: