 "Photo: MCT Campus")
In a college conference call this past Wednesday, director Richard Kelly and stars Cameron Diaz and James Marsden fielded questions about their upcoming film, "The Box."
The thriller is based on a short story, "Button, Button," written in 1970 by Richard Matheson and later turned into an episode of "The Twilight Zone." In the film, Diaz and Marsden play Norma and Arthur Lewis, a young couple who one day find a disfigured stranger, played by Frank Langella, on their doorstep delivering a mysterious box with a red button. He informs the couple that if they push the button they will receive one million dollars, but also someone they do not know will die.
Director Richard Kelly said that after reading "Button, Button" in his youth, the concept behind it "left a strong, strong footprint in my mind." While attempting to expand upon the story years later, Kelly said he wanted to explore whom the mysterious stranger worked for, why such an organization existed, and what its motive was in approaching the Lewis family.
Already a fan of Kelly's "very authentic" work, she jumped on board for the film when she learned he would be directing. For her part, Diaz recalled her interest in the "existential quandary" the script posed.
An interesting element of the film is the setting of 1976 Richmond, Virginia. Along with a decade-appropriate wardrobe, the stars donned southern accents.
The film's musical selections are also reflective of the era, with southern rock from The Grateful Dead, Wilson Pickett, and The Marshall Tucker Band and a pop song called "Bell Bottom Blues" by Derek and the Dominos.
Kelly wrote and created the film as a period piece "because the concept of someone you don't know, which is inherent to the premise, doesn't really exist anymore," he said. He feared that if the movie was set in the present, Norma (Diaz's character) would simply be "sitting in front of her laptop for half of the movie," google-ing the name of the stranger played by Langella.
He surmised, "there's something a bit more frightening…or people felt more vulnerable I think in the '70s because we didn't have all of these technologies that allowed us to spy on each other."
Kelly wasn't concerned about whether or not audiences would respond to a story that takes place over thirty years ago. Norma and Arthur Lewis, he explained, are a typical married couple under the age of forty who have a child and are facing the inevitable consequences of living beyond their means. The couple has a mortgage to pay, a car that is a little above their budget, and a son in an expensive private school, all while living on credit.
In light of the current economic crisis, the director believes the film "resonates with the audience of today despite the fact that it's set in 1976." He also said he hopes the movie makes the point "that we all are trying to live a better life and to achieve a better life, but…a lot of times it's all about the things that we strive to possess and this lifestyle that we want to achieve."
Diaz added, "[Society is] pushing the button more than ever" in terms of irresponsible use of credit as well as poor business and environmental practices.
Concurring with Kelly, she said, "I think it's obvious that people do sort of put forth the idea of …having monetary wealth over any other wealth, especially in our culture and society…and you know some people you know are able to let it go and move on and find their happiness or find something else that fulfills them and some people go ahead and push the button."
Referring to her character's moral dilemma, Diaz replied, "[Norma] wanted to believe that she could push a button and everything could change in her life for the better." She continued, "ultimately [pushing the button] does have an effect you know and we do have to suffer the consequences of that. Our economy is doing so right now based on all the buttons that were pushed over the last few years…so I think it's very relevant."
Working in a genre- sci-fi -in which neither Diaz or Mardsen had much experience, they both had positive things to say. Although Mdasen's work in the "X-Men" movie series involved some fantasy elements, he said "it was great to do something different." He admitted, however, that the human drama at the heart of the story was the main draw to the project. On a day-to-day basis, he explained that it was "more about the script we were shooting, the characters we were playing, because these characters were very human, although surrounded by some…supernatural elements."
"And I love…the liberties that sci-fi can take," Diaz quipped. Talking about Kelly, she added, "[sci-fi] seems to be his natural source of inspiration…it was fun to watch him do that and create that world."
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