You can’t help but wonder why Warner Bros. opened this box in early November. If the sci-fi thriller wasn’t fit for Halloween, they might have tried it in February, when other less-than-ambitious films are released. At this time of year, it has to compete with the first awards contenders, and it looks particularly thread-bare in comparison. Perhaps because part of the film takes place during the holiday season, and there are lights and trees in the background?

The concept and conceit are intriguing, as advertised. If someone gave you a box with a button on it, and promised you that if you pushed that button you would immediately receive one million dollars (tax free!), but that someone unknown to you would die, would you push it? Norma and Arthur Lewis would (Cameron Diaz and James Marsden). They’re a happily married Virginia couple in the 70’s, but a few unexpected setbacks leave them in a financial lurch, and the possibility of being unable to keep their gifted son in a posh school is threatening. Enter the mysterious and creepy Arlington Steward (Frank Langella), who delivers the box and oversees the execution of the consequences. Since the movie is more than 20 minutes long, those consequences do not end with a sudden windfall and the death of a random stranger. The extraordinarily gifted Langella seems out of place around Diaz and Marsden, whose Southern accents are painful, but then again, he’s supposed to be a slightly alien character. Langella adds class to the carelessness of this film.

It’s the script that is The Box’s most careless aspect. Lines are leaden and cliché, and the plot veers into inexplicable complications that are impossible to follow or sort out. Seemingly meant to be a commentary on the true nature of man, its message is unclear. Viewers might do better to stay home and watch the new TV series V, which has a similar vibe and better hair.

Rated PG-13

--Lisa Johnson Mandell