The Box (PG-13, 2009)

common sense media says

Creepy thriller too confusing for kids, awful for adults.


parents & educators say
  • 36% say violence is an issue

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this Cameron Diaz thriller from the director of Donnie Darko is based on a macabre premise: that human beings would rather win money than protect a stranger's life. It's too confusing and intense for tweens and young teens, and, in addition to the cloud of violence hovering over the entire movie, there are several disturbing images, including an upsetting disfigurement; two women being killed at close range; people who have eerie, unexpected nosebleeds; a fatal car accident; and gun violence. The swearing is fairly mild (one use of "s--t" is as strong as it gets), the sexuality is limited to the main couple kissing passionately and embracing, and the drinking is mostly social and done by adults. Still, most kids won't want to bother figuring out the movie's dark themes and puzzling plot.

Positive messages: Despite the movie's overwhelmingly negative message about humans being more selfish than selfless, Norma and Arthur's actions ultimately prove that as parents, at least, they have enough unconditional love for their child to be completely self-sacrificing.
Positive role models: Despite their decision to hit the "button unit," Norma and Arthur are repentant and remorseful about their actions and go to great lengths to try to right their wrongs. They never spend any of the money they "won" and instead try to track down the many mysteries surrounding the strange offer they were given.
Violence: The entire movie is based on a violent premise: Couples must decide whether to sentence someone they don't know to death and win $1 million or to pass up the lucrative offer. There's also gun violence, scenes that feature two dead women, a kidnapped child, and other bizarre, disturbing goings on. One of the main characters is horribly disfigured in the face, and another protagonist is missing almost all of the toes on her foot. Characters often have strange nose bleeds and act creepily in general.
Sex: A married couple embraces several times, exchanges longing looks, and kisses passionately.
Language: On the milder side -- one use of "s--t," plus "hell," "damn," "stupid," and "Jesus" used as an exclamation.
Consumerism: Corvette, Jack Daniels, and JVC are all seen.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Adults drink wine, cocktails, and champagne at a rehearsal dinner and reception. Arthur says he "needs a drink" and has a glass of whisky.

More on The Box

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • Families can talk about what the movie's experiment says about human nature. Is money more important than a stranger's life?
  • What would have you done given the same choice? Was what happened after the characters "hit the button" predictable?
  • Do movies have to be believable or relatable to be entertaining?

What's the story?

What's the story?
Set in 1976, THE BOX follows Norma and Arthur Lewis (Cameron Diaz and James Marsden), a happily married couple raising a sweetly precocious son (Sam Oz Stone) in the Richmond, Virginia, suburbs. One day, the Lewises' doorbell rings at 5:45 a.m. -- but when they open the door, all that's there is package. Inside, the couple finds a mysterious wooden box with a glass dome covering a red button. That afternoon, a disfigured man named Arlington Steward (Frank Langella) informs them that they've been selected for a unique offer: They have 24 hours to decide whether to push the button and win $1 million -- and, in doing so, sentence a stranger to death -- or to do nothing and keep a $100 consolation prize. Strapped for cash, Norma eventually pushes the button ... but then immediately regrets it. The Lewises are caught up in an enigmatic cat-and-mouse game with Steward as they attempt to figure out who he's working for and how to stop the murders, since it's clear the next "stranger" to be killed could be one of them.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 

Enigmatic thrillers with high-concept premises can lead to cinematic highs like The Usual Suspects, and those with sci-fi overtones can be cerebral like the under-appreciated Minority Report, but Richard Kelly's The Box is just plain dull and uninteresting. Diaz and Marsden (who looks either stiff or smoldering in every scene) can't believably pull off the Southern married parents routine, Diaz's horrible attempt at a Southern accent alternately draws groans and guffaws, and the '70s accouterments -- like the awful wallpaper and Marsden's ghastly mutton chops -- don't help. At least there are glimpses of Alice and What's Happening! on the telly.

The movie's premise starts off like a Twilight Zone episode, but it soon devolves into a ridiculously schlocky conspiracy to treat humans as sociological test subjects. Even Langella, one of those dignified older actors who could ask for a bus pass and make it look interesting, is too over the top as the Grim Reaper-esque agent of doom. By the time a zombie-like crowd starts following Diaz and Marsden around a public library, it's difficult to suppress the "it's so bad, it's funny" laughter.

Movie themes & details

Movie Details
Studio: Warner Bros.
Director: Richard Kelly
Cast: Cameron Diaz, Frank Langella, James Marsden
Genre: Thriller
Run time: 115 minutes
Theatrical release: November 6, 2009
DVD release: February 23, 2010
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: thematic elements, some violence and disturbing images
Watch our review

This review was written by Sandie Angulo Chen
 
 

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What parents & educators say

13
Based on 11 parent & educator reviews:
  • 36% say violence is an issue

Most useful reviews by all members

shop till i drop
teen, 14 years old
 
HORRIBLE MOVIE!!!!!!
i wanted to see the box so badly and when i finally did see it it was horrible. It's called a thriller right? Then how come theres no thrill or excitment in it?!!!! in my opinion this movie was boring and really confusing!!! DONT WASTE YOUR MONEY!!!!!

iamjustinbiebe ...
teen, 14 years old
 
when i opened this movie to watch it i exspected thrills and chills but all i got WAS BORING BORING BORING! DON"T WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS SH**!

slasher23
teen, 16 years old
 

G2B
kid, 13 years old
 
Thrilling The First Time You Watch
Although most of the reviews said it was basically a boring mess . I liked it when i got into it . Its a smart story line too . It isn't that scary once you've watched it once . The first time you watch it , you wont be sure whats going to happen , which is why its a thriller . With the nose bleeds , it was actually kinda freaky because you dont know why its happening . Theres one scene thats kind of a jump scene , i say that because i had a little jump . Im not going to tell the people whos not seen it what scene it is or it'll ruin the feeling and suspense ( A Tip About The Scene : Its when a woman in a car acts strange and talks about 'looking in the light' to a guy . .

Doodelium
kid, 13 years old
 
Fine
This movie had a good idea that could've been developed into a crazy action film that got good reviews except the makers/writers took a wrong turn and turned it into a random mess. The first half of the film was very good, despite Cameron Diaz's southern accent (which was laughable), then it just turned random. A lot of it should've been taken out, I sat there wondering if they had an editor. But I did like the ending I thought that was good.

Jadenp
teen, 15 years old
 
Suggested MPAA Rating: PG-13 for mature thematic material, some violence, disturbing images, and some brief mild language.

matthewr
teen, 15 years old
 

ThreeDaysGrace ...
teen, 15 years old
 
Point of the movie:
What the movie was about: Dumb*** CSM won't let me put in html tags, so just go on wikipedia. -- Warning: SPOILERS! Don't read it if you didn't see it yet. (And are planning on seeing it. If you didn't understand it, wikipedia makes perfect sense.

 
11 AND UP
IT ISNT THAT CONFUSING IF YOU FREAKING PAY ATTENTION WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IT TO BE VERY SIMPLE IT MAKES IT GOOD THAT WAY I LOVED IT I PAYED ATTENTION SO I REALLY DONT KNOW WHY YOU ARE MAD THAT YOU DIDNT GET IT. THAT IS PROBABLY BECAUSE YOU DONT PAY ATTENTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

angel6757
teen, 14 years old
 
biggest disapointment ever!!!
The box a movie starring Cameron Diaz was said to be a scary thriller about a strange box that kills people in return for 1 million dollors. But instead all i got was a boring movie with not one bit of thrill in it. The box left you hanging at the end with many questions but no answers. The box also had very mild vilonce, no thrill, and most of it was just plan confusing. Just take my words for it and even bother with this poorly made movie about a box that just sits there with no action or thrill.

Tanked out
teen, 17 years old
 
Boring
I don't know if I've ever seen a worse thriller/horror movie. It's so confusing for anyone, the story is also very in-consistant on many levels. More importantly it doesn't have any spice to it. It's just a boring story.

TheSuperman765
teen, 16 years old
 
i rate this title IFFY for 13+
What to watch out for * Messages: Despite the movie's overwhelmingly negative message about humans being more selfish than selfless, Norma and Arthur's actions ultimately prove that as parents, at least, they have enough unconditional love for their child to be completely self-sacrificing. * Role models: Despite their decision to hit the "button unit," Norma and Arthur are repentant and remorseful about their actions and go to great lengths to try to right their wrongs. They never spend any of the money they "won" and instead try to track down the many mysteries surrounding the strange offer they were given. * Violence: The entire movie is based on a violent premise: Couples must decide whether to sentence someone they don't know to death and win $1 million or to pass up the lucrative offer. There's also gun violence, scenes that feature two dead women, a kidnapped child, and other bizarre, disturbing goings on. One of the main characters is horribly disfigured in the face, and another protagonist is missing almost all of the toes on her foot. Characters often have strange nose bleeds and act creepily in general. … * Sex: A married couple embraces several times, exchanges longing looks, and kisses passionately. * Language: On the milder side -- one use of "s--t," plus "h--l," "d--n," "stupid," and "Jesus" used as an exclamation. * Consumerism: Corvette, Jack Daniels, and JVC are all seen. * Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Adults drink wine, cocktails, and champagne at a rehearsal dinner and reception. Arthur says he "needs a drink" and has a glass of whisky.

 
Made no sense at all.
I watched this two days ago and have no idea what it was about. It started out really interesting - a couple finds a box delivered on their doorstep with a button on it. If they push the button, they win a million dollars and someone they don't know will die. Of course, they push it (it would have been a shorter and sweeter movie if they didn't), but then things turn from interesting to just really bizarre. By the end of the movie, I neither knew nor cared what happened to any of the characters. It was the most convoluted mess I've watched since....well, since I can remember.

Smileyfacegirl123
kid, 12 years old
 
Don't watch if you want to have all of the characters live happily ever after
This film is very odd. It is all about the couple Norma and Arthur making all of the wrong decisions. It is a little scary and made me jump quite a bit. Above it says that this is to complicated for teens but I am 12 and understood it. However this doesn't mean I enjoyed due to a horrible twist at the end that wasn't needed and ruined the film even though it wasn't that good to start with.

2Simple
adult
 
the biggest waste of time EVER

TJ 1o1
teen, 15 years old
 
: (
JUST PLAIN BAD !!! not bad 4 kids its just a poorly made movie

chase14
kid, 11 years old
 
i really disagree with CSM i LOVED the movie it is a little violent. and i understand people hated it but try it and see it but its very confusing so just pay attention when u watch it.

IsItgoodORnot
teen, 16 years old
 
You're watching confusion folded into a movie.
A extreeme dissapointment. The movie just deteriorated right after she pressed the button.

bananalover
teen, 16 years old
 
this movie was so scary!!!!!

Stephaniie
teen, 16 years old
 
not for kids.
i think that it should be watched in a good mood to concentrate, you would have to watch this film a few times to figure it out.

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