“The Box” is a preposterous film. Now, being preposterous is not a bad thing; in fact, most people would expect preposterousness because this film is directed by Richard Kelly, the man behind “Donnie Darko.” Needless to say, “Donnie,”one of the most preposterous films of the noughties, works so well that it’s become a cult classic. “The Box,” however, doesn’t work hardly at all—it feels an hour too long, and it makes you go “WTF?!” repeatedly, and not in a good way.

Based on a short story by Richard Matheson (the same man who wrote “I Am Legend”), “The Box” stars Cameron Diaz and James Marsden as a young couple in Virginia in 1976 with a tough, ethical decision to make—they face a cash-strapped future, but a disfigured man (Frank Langella) offers them US$1 million to push a mysterious button in a box, which will cause the death of a complete stranger. Now it is not much of a spoiler to say that they push the button (there wouldn’t be 115 minutes of story here if they didn’t), and that sucks them into a series of mysteries. Who is this disfigured man? Who was killed? And why is everyone around them looking so ghostly?

As with “Donnie,” Kelly manages to keep us intrigued as the mystery in “The Box” unfolds, except he does so at the slowest pace ever. I found myself checking the time repeatedly, and that can’t be a good sign during a film. Clearly, Kelly is trying to stretch the short story to feature film length. He’s done it, but the film drags on as a result. And you know how you feel fulfilled when you see a mystery gradually unfold? In “The Box,” it was more about disappointment and frustration. The explanations are preposterous enough, too bad they are also marginally stupid. “Wait, is that it?” I asked when the end credits started rolling. I went home after the film, and put on my “Donnie” DVD.

Winnie Yeung

(USA) Directed and written by Richard Kelly. Starring Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, and Frank Langella. Category IIB, 115 minutes. Continuing.