The Box

The Box.... yes, I am speaking of the movie. I just finished watching it, so what follows is my cut and dry opinion of the movie.

*Spoilers*
Suffice to say, I didn't like the movie. The movie trailer's get you hooked with promises of a sort of moral dilemma movie. For the first 45 minutes of the movie or so, they even leave you with the sort of misguided impression that is exactly what it is about. Then with the audacity of a rug being swept out from under your feet, the movie drops into heavy sci-fi mode, even bringing in the plot element that aliens from Mars are coming to take over earth.

You find out quickly the deliverer of the box is in contact with a mysterious "them." Because of an infusion of "them" through a lightning bolt, he has been charged with limited capabilities to control our minds. With his CIA, FBI and NASA knowledge and this new power, he is called to "test" humanity to find whether it is deserving of extinction or not. I believe this movie's plot, however, has much to learn from Walker Percy's "Space Odyssey" chapters in his book Lost in the Cosmos.

Assuming you know anything about the movie, then you know that humanity's test is concerned with a box and a choice. The problem, though, is that the last thirty minutes drags you through some promising philosophical questioning only to totally disappoint you with no answers. Humanity is just plain screwed because of a hedonistic drive to press buttons in order to attain money. Altogether as an ending designed to drop you into a temporary state of despair, the movie wouldn't be half-bad, especially considering it is in the vein of the classic Twilight Zone. However, God is in the details... and I do mean God.

The cuss words in this movie were extremely limited, but with a few misuses of "Jesus Christ" the majority were aberrations of "God." Secondarily, just as you approach closer and closer to the despairing end of the movie there are two scenes of significance. In an unexplained scene, Arther comes walking out of a blinding light which aligns perfectly with the windows behind it, and then pauses just long enough to leave him standing in a cross of light. The second scene is the final one where we see Steward. He walks out of the house whose inhabitants were the latest to fail humanity, and guess what? They have a Nativity outside in their front yard.

A subtle message I believe, but the conclusion? There is no hope for humanity and that means you Christians too. A very bleak view of humanity. In the end, I'm glad this movie is just some twisted director's view of humanity and not reality.

Admittedly this could be a stretch, however, I have but one final parting observation, but to understand it, you must know that it was Norma that pushes the button. Arthur (Adam) yet again fails in his task to protect Norma (Eve). Even more so, you can see the Genesis parallel drawn out further when Arthur and Norma are separated in the library, and Norma is separated to meet Mr. Steward (Serpent?). I think this is just a classic example of how God has the last laugh.

Go and set the world Ablaze.