Box Watcher

Nicolas Cage can be a great actor.  Looking at his IMDB.com listing you find his films run the gamut from truly great (Leaving Las Vegas, Adaptation, Matchstick Men, The Weather Man, Raising Arizona, etc..) to the, well, downright terrible (Ghost Rider, The Wicker Man, etc) and all points in between.  Lately his films have been closer to the down side  of things.  At first glance Knowing didn’t look to be anything special.   

It’s 1959 and a new middle school is opening.  As a class project each student is drawing a picture to place in a time capsule.  Move forward to 2009 for the capsule opening. When the contents are handed out Caleb Koestler (Chandler Canterbury) is given one.  He unfolds it to find not a picture, but a list of numbers.  Luckily his dad John (Nicolas Cage), is a professor at MIT.  He soon uncovers the pattern hidden in the numbers.  They detail the date, location, and how many people died in every disaster of the last fifty years.  Including three events that have yet to occur.  Thus sets in motion a race to figure out the greater meaning behind it all.

Director Alex Proyas is this films biggest strength.  He brings the same sense of dread from his previous films (The Crow, Dark City) but places it in more familiar surroundings.  Horror filmmakers would do well to recruit Proyas.  The scenes in the woods when Caleb receives mysterious visitors are chilling.  The camera and the lighting combine to give the strangers an eerie look.  The actors body language never tips off their intentions. 

The film also scores points for being terrifying in parts.  The plane crash is shown in one continuous shot.  As it comes down there is a horror of seeing something like that happen but, not being able to do anything.  The chaotic aftermath drives home the fact that the list is real, and more people will die.  

The ending is a little problematic.  Some people will have a hard time accepting it.  It’s a something of a tonal shift from the rest of the film.  It’s also somewhat clumsily telegraphed early on in some expository dialogue.  It’s still affective but this will be a deal-breaker for some viewers.  

Knowing is a completely wonderful surprise.  Cage is not necessarily at the top of his game but he is as good as the material needs him to be.  Alex Proyas does wonders blending high concept Sci-Fi elements, all the while never losing the human aspect of it all.  When looking at the quality of the films he has directed it’s not difficult to imagine that he is only a breakout away from being an A-list director.  

**** out of *****