‘The Apocalypse Box’ VOD Review
Stars: Tom Butcher, Russell Biles, Ray Calleja, Aryana Neo, Corrinne Wicks, Lola Knight, Sylvester McCoy, Paul Foot | Written and Directed by James Eaves
It was pretty much inevitable that we’d get a movie like The Apocalypse Box at some point this year. With a contentious election and political rioting in both France and the UK, where the film is from, and a divisive vote just a few months away in the US, someone was going to make a politically themed horror film. And that someone is writer/director James Eaves (The Witch’s Hammer, Neighbours from Hell).
Two armed men kill an elderly antique dealer, making her death look like a suicide. A shot of a box-shaped object transitions to one of a ballot box. It’s the day before the election and Piers Stonesmith (Tom Butcher; You Might Get Lost, When Did You Last See Your Father?) is making a campaign appearance. Running on the slogan “Keep Britain British” his party is behind by eight points in the polls, but he is determined to become Prime Minister, at any price.
He has gathered together an assortment of voters, including Cyrill (Russell Biles; Beyond Fury, A Very English Christmas), Jake (Ray Calleja; Mission of Honor, Deadly Perfect) and Khara (Aryana Neo) for what is billed as a focus group. Instead, they find themselves along with Stonesmith’s wife Helena (Corrinne Wicks; The Black Prince, The Waterhouse) and his head of PR Ella (Lola Knight; Conflict, Nothing But Blue), locked in a room. Also in the room is a box and several keys that they are told could unlock their fondest wish, or visit unspecified consequences on them
The first two attempts at unlocking the box fail with no apparent consequences, but the TV newsman (Sylvester McCoy; Dr. Who, The Munsters) follows each attempt with news of death and destruction, it’s not called The Apocalypse Box for nothing. But how all of this ties in with Stonesmith’s campaign, and the skulduggery we see going on outside the room, is as big a mystery as the box itself.
Surprisingly, given the way the film’s press release plays up Stonesmith’s right-wing stance and anti-immigrant rhetoric, neither plays that big a role in the film itself. A couple of characters exchange words over whether he’s a patriot or a bigot, but he himself is absent for much of the film’s first half, leaving the viewer to observe the group, just as he is doing via CCTV.
And what we see is an odd mix of the supernatural, as the box starts to reveal its power, and attempts at social commentary. But The Apocalypse Box can’t seem to take a side, one minute painting Cyril as an angry racist, the next wanting the viewer to feel bad for him due to the death of his wife, even as he laces his story with comments about “those people”. He’s also the only one of them who’s given anything in the way of background or characterization.
For all it matters in the end, Stonesmith could have been an equally ruthless and power-hungry left-wing politician and the story could have played out almost exactly the same. The Apocalypse Box is more of a critique of politicians, and to a degree, voters, in general rather than a partisan film. Which makes the decision to publicize it the way they did seem odd as it could turn off some potential viewers.
As a horror film, The Apocalypse Box doesn’t fare much better. Yes, the box can grant wishes, but it will come as no surprise that like in so many other films, things don’t play out the way the wish maker expects. The result is a lacklustre variation on Wishmaster and The Monkey’s Paw, one that’s more predictable than scary. And, when it’s finally revealed how this all ties together, this grand scheme feels less believable than the existence of a wish-granting box.
Overall, The Apocalypse Box is a competently made, but fairly empty film. It has some interesting ideas, but never manages to come together as either a horror film or a political thriller. It might kill some time if you’re in an undemanding mood, but you’d be better off throwing your support behind another film.
** 2/5
The Apocalypse Box is available on Digital Platforms via Indie Rights.
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