The Box of Plot Holes.
My post from a while back simply titled “Donnie Darko” is one of the most commented on posts in The Sonny Wilkins Chronicle history (the other probably being “Cluttered Dark Knight Irony“). Some jumped down my throat claiming I didn’t know anything about philosophy, some were quick to defend me, and others just altogether laughed. Towards the end of the “review” (if you’d like to call it that) I quickly mentioned the IMDB summary of Richard Kelly’s next film “pretentiously titled” The Box. Well the day has finally come and “The Measurement Cubed” is hitting theaters in just a week. The film is already looking to be another Kelly blunder behind the lauded Southland Tales. I WILL NOT see it, so I can’t say anything about it (unlike “Darko”, which I’ve given a chance 2 or 3 times). However, I would like to share what others — critics and film goers alike — are saying about it.
Let’s start with some “User Comments” on IMDB. I’ll be the first to admit that the IMDB Community is typically a bunch of jackasses. But since The Box hasn’t had its nation-wide release yet, there ain’t a whole lot of reviews on it. A few critics, and people who’ve seen the film at festivals is all. Out of 7 total user reviews for the movie, 4 were incredibly negative, and three went from “didn’t make too big of an impression but worthwhile” to good to near genius (7,8, and 9 out of 10). This is the way these Richard Kelly films work. One guy who gave the film 4/10 summarizes what follows the button being pushed:
“… a conspiracy about someone who was struck by lightning, the possibility of alien life or some other Godly being influencing these situations. Scenes involving gateways opening up in public libraries, random nose bleeds and mindless drones stalking the Lewis family, become almost unintentionally comical in their absurdity.”
A 3/10 giver ended his comment with a clever play on words:
“It happens that I saw The Box on the same night as the first night of the Michael Jackson documentary. Whereas that was called This Is It, The Box should have been called Is That It?“
And “Revival05″ tells film fans, even Donnie Darko fans ( as he is one himself) to avoid it at all costs:
“The big problem with this movie, I think, is that two worlds collide; Norma and Arthur, very ambitiously played by Diaz and James Marsden, are very likable. They are portrayed realistically. But since this is a domestic scene worth taking seriously, all proportions get distorted when we are to believe that they are the victims of being in an overlong, mishmashy Twilight Zone-episode where nothing makes any sense and nothing is there on screen to rejoice in.“
The negative reviews on Rotten Tomatoes don’t get any less harsh. With only 9 submitted reviews from critics, the “tomato meter” rating for The Box is currently hovering around 44% “Fresh”. Not good. Especially not good considering that number will surely drop with more reviews to pile on in the next week, but also that it takes (I think) a 70% for a film to become “Fresh”. A mountain far too high for any Kelly film to climb when it’s already at 44%. Here are just a few from real-life, actual movie critics (who, I’ll also admit, can be douches sometimes):
“Regrettably, and despite a lot of effects — including those watery tentacles he seems so fond of — Kelly delivers a Big Reveal that is, frankly, boring.”
“The pic reveals the hazards of taking Twilight Zone material too far and too seriously.“
“Although an improvement on Southland Tales, Richard ‘Donnie Darko’ Kelly’s cryptic moody thriller has a far-fetched premise that is not helped by a script filled with holes.“
Even the guys who are giving the film a “favorable” review, albeit on a shoestring, are getting in on the act. This quote comes from David Strattan, an Aussie who liked the film but admits:
“…thing about Richard Kelly’s films is that in none of them do you know exactly what’s happening…”
Now c’mon, bring on the Kelly lovers!!! I’m ready to fuck shit up!
-Sonny
I’ll bite lol.
First, it’s rather unfair to take negative quotes from bad reviews and present them as if they reflect some sort of consensus about the movie (or any movie). You say you want to share “what critics and moviegoers alike are saying”, but you only pick and choose the negative comments. I could do the same thing with the good reviews of The Box and make it sound like one of the best movies of the year. Watch:
“[The Box] gives a true rise to the level of the anxiety in scenes orchestrated with dazzling virtuosity (the anniversary, car accident, marriage, conclusion). With The Box, Richard Kelly raises the bar prodigiously by reassuring those which had been disappointed by Southland Tales, while confirming with the others all the hopes placed in him since Donnie Darko.”
“Marking each of his works, an imprint of his own, Richard Kelly will probably become the most worthy successor of David Lynch as a filmmaker’s personality definitely at hand and ever more exciting to discover each time. Rating: 19/20″
“As always with Matheson, this story here is more psychological rather than purely “science-fictive”, but that’s exactly what Richard Kelly needed as a “draft”, to make another great movie full of implications and references. Rating 9/10″
“Beware of the trailer (do not watch), which gives the wrong impression of a bad action movie: The Box is a film that is applied, thoughtful, educated, and belonging to the genus science fiction minimalist of films like Pi and Memento. Even if the film does not reach these levels, it still has the same taste and flavor is a valuable and still quite rare.”
“Despite making you approach it much more than it’s prepared to come towards you, ”The Box” is a very successful exercise in mood and tone. Win Butler’s rambunctious soundtrack combines with a great sense of the mid 1970s to create a sense of menace that will keep you close to the edge of your seat, and though you’re never as sure as you want to be of what’s going on, the cinematic technique is brilliant. Rating 4/5″
“Kelly gave birth to a damn good thriller in which the effect of fascination endures long after the screening.”
“Terrifying and Disturbing. A Mind-Bending Chiller packed with Smart Scares.”
And there are a TON more reviews out there just as positive.
Now, if those were the only critic quotes you read, wouldn’t it sound as if Richard Kelly definitely succeeded in making The Box?
Second, the quote you gave about never really knowing “exactly what’s happening” in Richard Kelly’s films was not meant to be a sign of a bad director who doesn’t know what he’s doing. It’s meant to convey a style that Kelly is apparently using to create the appropriate atmosphere that he desires in his films. The same comment has been made NUMEROUS times about David Lynch’s movies, that he just throws weird shit into his movies just for the hell of it, and that it turns off a sizeable segment of moviegoers in the process. I, for one, LOVE how Lynch puts in things that, while visually captivating and rather unsettling, don’t really make themselves an obvious part of the plot. Kelly does the same thing in his movies. It’s a style that’s not for everyone. But it’s also not a sign of a hack director.
Kelly definitely makes his audiences work for concrete answers, he never does any handholding. He’s also one of the very few directors out there who incorporates outside sources to augment his movies, such as the movie’s websites and even graphic novels. In Kelly’s world, he attempts to intrigue viewers into feeling a definite sense of unease, dread and confusion (right along with his main characters), and hopes to make them curious enough to both talk about the movie afterwards as well as check out other outlets to gain more info on the movie. A lot of people may hate having to do more than sit in the theater for the 2 hour running time in order to truly “get” what just occurred, but there are a number of people who enjoy doing so. The tv show “Lost” has been incorporating this into their 6 year run as well, where viewers are given a bunch of other sources to learn more about the island and what the hell is really going on there. Again, some people dig it, while others get frustrated by it. Just depends on your tastes.
Many of the things that apperently “make no sense” in The Box are clued in on the website to explain the weirdness happening around the protagonists. For those who check it out, they gain a better understanding as to why those seemingly out-of-the-blue moments occur, and then if they watch the movie a second time (on DVD) they pick up on things they missed now that they’re armed with more knowledge. Definitely makes for a more challenging viewing experience.
Third, you mentioned how even the favorable reviews mention the same critical things that the non-favorable reviews mention. Well, guess what? Even many of the non-favorable reviews even mention the good, positive things that the favorable reviews mention–such as the look of the film, the cinematography, the score, Kelly’s successful creation of unease and how “inspired” and “imaginative” the ideas are in the film. Again, very easy to pick and choose what you want to promote.
While The Box may or may not go on to earn some decent money at the box office (the ONLY thing studios really care about), what I find interesting is the absolute hatred some have for Richard Kelly. It’s not enough to simply say they don’t like his movies…that’s just an opinion and everyone is entitled to their’s. But it seems as if more than a few are actively hoping for him and his movies to fail. I’ve never understood investing that much negativve emotion into someone I don’t know and who has zero effect over anything in my life lol. Not saying that you’re doing that here, but damn, I’ve seen some absolute craziness online concerning a rabid desire to bash Richard Kelly over the smallest and most insignificant things. I don’t get the desire.
Oh, and one more thing: to get a “Fresh” label on rottentomatoes, you need a 60%, not a 70%. And The Box is sitting at 50% at the moment (they added another positive review lol). Then again, I think “Knowing” got something like a 33% favorable rating on that site and that movie not only debuted at the #1 spot, it went on to make $80 million at the box office in the U.S. alone. Now that movie was total crap, and watching Nicholas Cage mope around for 2 hours as the plot got less and less interesting was not my idea of time well spent. But, hey, at least it was easy to follow *thumbsup*…and that’s all that matters, right?
- Unfair? Probably.
- David Lynch is avant garde whereas Dick Kelly is a poor man’s avant garde, if you can’t see that I feel sorry for you.
- I like working for answers, my favorite movie is 2001 and Persona (you probably have no idea what Persona is) is up there on my list too. It’s not that I find it “frustrating”, it’s just that I prefer a real artist taking me on that journey. Hahaha!! Ur gonna point to LOST?!? That pile of shit show?? Dude, you just lost all credibility.
- Who the fuck wants to dig around on the Internet and/or spend extra dough to get a total experience? If Kubrick came out today he’d be making the same type of films and he wouldn’t bother with any of that because his work can, and could, stand on its own merit.
- Yeah, pick and choose. No doubt.
- I just think he sucks, I could care less if he succeeds or not. Some of the worst directors on Earth make millions (Micheal Bay) and some don’t (M. Knight). That’s not a concern of mine. What does concern me is people calling Donnie Darko “my generation’s cult film” and calling Kelly a genius.
- Ahh, it is 60%? Okay. Well, I will guarantee right here in a months time it will be around 40%. I’d bet you if I could.
- Thanks for the thoughtful comments. I completely disagree with you (especially on LOST and comparing Kelly to Lynch), but you came here with intelligence and legitimate arguments and that’s something in this world.
- Sonny
Wait a tic, I DID mention how 3 out of 7 IMDB comments were positive, I even gave the ratings!
“- Unfair? Probably.”
We agree there lol
“- David Lynch is avant garde whereas Dick Kelly is a poor man’s avant garde, if you can’t see that I feel sorry for you.”
Point out where I said Richard Kelly was on the level of David Lynch. I’ll make it easier for you: you can’t.
What I DID do, though, was point out that Kelly’s seemingly random and incoherent inclusing of things in his movie is purposeful and not due to anything relating to his talent and skill level. Too many people chalk this up to his inability to tell a story. That’s not the case. I only brought up Lynch because a helluva lot of people make the same comments about his movies as well…it was NOT to say Kelly deserves to be compared to Lynch at this point. But there’s no denying their approach and styles do overlap in places.
“- I like working for answers, my favorite movie is 2001 and Persona (you probably have no idea what Persona is)”
Wow, talk about pretentious lol…Does your viewpoint suddenly hold more value simply because you’ve seen a movie that I have not? Is that all it takes in your eyes? If so, you are easily impressed.
“It’s not that I find it “frustrating”, it’s just that I prefer a real artist taking me on that journey. Hahaha!! Ur gonna point to LOST?!? That pile of shit show?? Dude, you just lost all credibility.”
Claiming Kelly isn’t a “real artist” is subjective twaddle, usually brought out by those who feel their opinions hold far more value than they really do. As for bringing up “Lost”, since reading comprehension seems to be one of your very few flaws, I’ll be more specitic: I was talking about the more recent idea of making viewers of movies and tv shows do some investigating outside of the confines of the movie or show they are watching in order to truly “get” what is going on. It’s a trend that has taken on much life in recent years. I’m not sure how mentioning that the popular show “Lost” does this somehow damages my credibility…
“- Who the fuck wants to dig around on the Internet and/or spend extra dough to get a total experience?”
See above. Also, see the NUMEROUS times I already said that “some dig it, some do not”. If you don’t dig it, so be it.
“If Kubrick came out today he’d be making the same type of films and he wouldn’t bother with any of that because his work can, and could, stand on its own merit.”
Who cares what Kubrick would do? There’s no template for making films that absolutely MUST be followed. And Kubrick has made his share of clunkers as well.
“- I just think he sucks, I could care less if he succeeds or not. Some of the worst directors on Earth make millions (Micheal Bay) and some don’t (M. Knight). That’s not a concern of mine. What does concern me is people calling Donnie Darko “my generation’s cult film” and calling Kelly a genius.”
So you don’t hate Kelly, you just hate that people like him lol. Gotcha. Yeah, that makes sense. God forbid anyone else’s viewpoints rattle your astute sensibilities.
“- Ahh, it is 60%? Okay. Well, I will guarantee right here in a months time it will be around 40%. I’d bet you if I could.”
The only thing that would make me take that bet is that the awful Southland Tales ended up with a rottentomatoes rating of 36%. Most of the negative reviews acknowledge that The Box is much better than Southland Tales. I can’t imagine that only resulting in a mere 4 percentage points difference. My guess would be around 50%-55%..this will be a movie that people either love or hate, it seems, splitting the reviews pretty much down the middle.
“Wait a tic, I DID mention how 3 out of 7 IMDB comments were positive, I even gave the ratings!”
I know…that’s why I used the word “promote”. In your original post you never quoted even ONE positive comment, instead preferring to “promote” and emphasize all the negative ones–obviously because, as you just said, you hate that Kelly is getting so much love from some people and movie fans…there was an agenda behind what you chose to emphasize and how you chose to portray it, that’s all.
“- Thanks for the thoughtful comments. I completely disagree with you (especially on LOST and comparing Kelly to Lynch), but you came here with intelligence and legitimate arguments and that’s something in this world.”
Anytime lol
I’ve told Donnie Darko fans this in the past… I’ll stick to my Bergman and Kubrick, and you stick to your Kelly and Spielberg. Deal?