Comments on: Richard Kelly’s The Box Trailer

By: Sean

Sean — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 06:16:21 +0000

Uh… I meant late as in “often tardy”?

By: David

David — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 05:01:37 +0000

“The late Richard Matheson?” Richard Matheson is still alive. You apparently don’t know anything or care to look it up before you go blogging. Why the hell would I trust your opinion on anything, now?

By: Connor G.

Connor G. — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 04:22:37 +0000

I would have hit the button before the old dude left my house.

By: Reed Farrington

Reed Farrington — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 02:35:23 +0000

Ndor, you may be right in saying that “thereâ€™s quite a bit to investigate within this short story.” From what I’ve read of other people’s opinions, the problem is that when you start fleshing out the details, you end up diluting the original concept. For example, explaining who the “mysterious man” really is takes away from the viewer’s imagination and ultimately results in disappointment.

As for putting trust in talented, creative screenwriters and directors, look at the Twilight Zone movie with segments from Landis, Spielberg, Dante, and Miller. This movie was a disappointment despite the talent involved. And they even kept the stories to short segments.

By: Ndor

Ndor — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 00:41:02 +0000

I think that if the TZ episode had never been made, nobody would be thinking that the premise could not work as a full-length feature film. When I watched tht TZ episode it was poorly made, poorly acted, and didn’t pull me in at all. Quite a lot about the story/premise was left uninvestigated, such as who the “mysterious man” really is, who he works for, where he came from, why he chose this particular couple, etc, etc. There’s quite a bit to investigate within this short story. It’s a good jumping off point for any director or screenwriter who has the talent and creativity to do so.

I also thought the production values actually looked impressive. I know Richard Kelly was impressed with the way “Zodiac” was shot and wanted to have a similar effect on recreating the late 70s the way Fincher did in recreating the late 60s. Hopefully he succeeded.

By: Reed Farrington

Reed Farrington — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:58:31 +0000

The premise works well for a half hour Twilight Zone episode, but any longer and you risk losing the audience. The producers of TZ in the 60s came to this realization when they tried switching to an hour long format. I don’t necessarily subscribe to this theory, but I would think that people are even less patient nowadays.

I’m a greedy misanthrope, but I still wouldn’t press the button. I would wonder at why someone would make that sort of offer. If someone had a gun pointed at my head or someone I cared about, I suppose I would press the button though.

By: Big Hungry

Big Hungry — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 09:40:53 +0000

I think this looks good too. I hope they make it more of a smart horror movie if that makes sense. I guess what I am trying to say is I hope they do not lean on gore to make the movie work or be scary – but that it works in a cerebral kind of way. Love the question posed about the button. Would you press the button?

By: Fatbologna

Fatbologna — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:23:53 +0000

This seems like a good turn for Kelly. He had his sophomore effort go completely awry but it seems like he had more ambition than experience on that one and maybe learned a thing or two from his missteps. A decreased scope should definitely help him reign in and focus his skills. I’m cautiously optimistic on this one.

By: David Wilson

David Wilson — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:31:19 +0000

What camera are they using? Seems like a similar one to the one on Public Enemies. I hate unnecessary shaky cam.

By: Matt Gamble

Matt Gamble — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:46:57 +0000

The production values look terrible. Hopefully it looks better on the big screen then a low quality YouTube trailer.

And I love Matheson, I just don’t know if Kelly is capable of putting out a quality film on his own.

By: Raph

Raph — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:17:42 +0000

It looks good however some parts look like a standard horror/thriller. The part with the father christmas looked great, kinda Donnie Darko-esque.
I hope Richard Kelly can redeem himself with this.

By: Theman

Theman — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:47:02 +0000

Looks interesting for sure. I love the original story I’m curious to see how its expanded. Jay will probably love the fact that it looks like a period piece.

And South land Tales wasn’t just a mess. It was complete shit also.