Better Left Unopened

When I saw the trailer for THE BOX i was instantly a believer in this Twilight Zone-esque film. It had the throwback plot and throwback setting that swept me away from my world and into a new one.
THe plot, as portrayed in the brief synapses designed to generate intrigue was simple enough. Cameron Diaz and James Marsden could push a button and get a million dollars, with the added benefit of killing a stranger. Plus there was a guy with a messed up face and eerie looking people.
The final product was a complicated trek through strange southern accents, tacky outfits and overcomplicated threads about salvation, Mars and moral choices.
Ultimately the movie spins a yarn that leads nowhere. Much like our heroes, we're looking for a way out, but the only ending is unsatisfying. We end up being led through door after door with no end in sight, until we fall through a series of loopholes that bring us to the end. It is especially disappointing considering the movie is nearly two hours long, and 85% of that time was a waste.
Cameron Diaz is painful to watch in the movie, but is especially tough to listen to. Her accent sounds like the product of acting school for dummies or the aftermath of an old soap opera binge. Regardless, I found her totally unsympathetic and was excited when she finally gets her just desert. Seriously, she had it coming.
James Marsden shows us why he is so great as Cyclops, because that mask lets him hide the fact that his face isn't capable of much expression. He does dull outrage, dull shock and mild happiness quite well. Unfortunately, in a movie that is supposed to have high shock value his expressions are rather limited.
I was intrigued with all the NASA angles, except that they're not explored as a possible vehicle for problems and solutions. Instead we're left in the dark, and Mars is only hinted at as the possible source of Earth's problems. (Spoiler Alert: My interpretation of the movie was that when NASA began exploring Mars they opened up a connection with a higher power that began judging them to see if the people of Earth should be allowed to further exploration. But that's just my guess.)
Anyway, I wouldn't recommend this movie to anyone I wasn't mad at. THE BOX might have contained secrets and fun, but this box is a bore. You're better off watching INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS or some other Twilight zone creation than pretending to be excited by THE BOX.