How do you pad out a six-page short story that strives to be nothing more than a clever little morality tale into a feature-length film? By throwing in lots and lots of stuff—practically everything but zombies.



There are moments in the second half of “The Box,” writer-director Richard Kelly’s adaptation of Richard Matheson’s 1970 tale “Button, Button,” during which the film threatens to cave in under the weight of all the disparate elements Kelly has added. But the overload was true of Kelly’s two previous films, too: The beloved “Donnie Darko,” with its time-traveling teens, wormholes and giant evil rabbits, and the not-so-beloved “Southland Tales,” with its Justin Timberlake musical numbers, neo-Marxist terrorist groups and magical flying ice-cream trucks.



The critical consensus is still out on Kelly, and “The Box” will do nothing to settle the ongoing argument regarding his ability to coalesce his wild conceits into digestible narratives. “Button, Button” was previously adapted for the 1980s revival of “The Twilight Zone,” and the story underwent such radical changes that Matheson had his name removed.



But the name remains among the credits for “The Box,” even though the film and short story are so different, they aren’t even in the same genre. The picture certainly starts out like Matheson’s story: A married couple, Arthur and Norma Lewis (James Marsden and Cameron Diaz), receive a package containing a small wooden box with a red pushbutton protected by a locked glass dome.



The box comes with a mysterious note: “Mr. Steward will call on you at 5 p. m.,” it says, and he certainly does. To say that Arlington Steward (Frank Langella) is unusual does not begin to describe him. He delivers an intriguing offer: Push the button, and someone somewhere in the world you don’t know will die. You will also receive a million dollars in cash.



The farther “The Box” goes, the more ludicrous the movie becomes, but Kelly is talented enough to make you consider his admittedly far-fetched ideas through sheer craft (the movie looks fantastic) and his direction of his actors (Marsden and Diaz shine in roles that are close to unplayable).



“The Box” is a mess, but it’s a curiously haunting, intriguing, brain-tickling mess.Movie Review



“The Box”



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Drama starring James Marsden, Cameron Diaz, Frank Langella, Sam Oz Stone and James Rebhorn, Holmes Osborne. Directed by Richard Kelly.



113 minutes



Rated PG-13 for vulgar language, brief violence, disturbing images, adult themes. Opened Friday in area theaters.