Rating: 
Summary: Sumptuous indie film
Review: "Box of Moonlight" is an impeccably charming movie, to say the least. It's refreshing, silly, and dramatic, while being "classified" as a comedy, when it should have been "comedy/drama." Anyway...The acting is first-rate, while the actors are more B-list than A-list, but that hardly matters. It's a free, flightful movie that'll you'll enjoy to see. But seems more PG-13 rated than R, due to some, but not graitutious, profanity, but frontal male nudity is plentiful. Sumptuous, free, silly, and charming, this makes for a summer movie lover's VHS/DVD collection. Rated R for language and for some nudity.
Rating: 
Summary: Fabulous lead performance, disappointing film.
Review: 'Box of Moonlight' is Tom DeCillo's attempt to infuse the American indie tradition with Shakespearean pastoral. As in a Shakespeare comedy like 'A midsummer night's dream' or 'As you like it', a man representing nomrality (in this case electrical engineer Al Fountain, dubbed 'Mr. Clockwork' by his wife, who tortures his son with multiplication tables; who stops his worker's baseball games because there's still fifteen minutes left on the clock; who lets his life be ruled by clocks and dates; who utters aphorisms of a banality even Forrest Gump might balk at) enters a magical forest where the exact opposite of what he believes in reigns, allowing him to reassess his life and the assumptions it is built on. In this case, Al is helped by a figure, Buck/The Kid, who is more Puck than Prospero, a man who has dropped out of the 'grid', who symbolically appears at a 'blind spot' on the ooad just as Al is at his most exasperated. This weekend away from normality takes place appropriately on a holiday, July 4, with all its connotations of independence. Buck's magic circle is a mixture of mad conspiracy theorist/extremist's den; one of those centres where tired businessmen recharge their batteries; and a typically American inflection on communism. Buck hates the FBI, shoots at a target marked CIA, refuses to pay his taxes. Far from offering a collective revolt, Buck indulges in petty thieving and police-baiting, helping himself, while the system remains unchanged. He doesn't offer a genuine alternative lifetyle - he simply allows Al to bring out his better instincts - helping others, talking to others, taking risks, spending money. Unlike Shakespeare, this is the ultimate male fantasy. Women exist, their pain is even acknowledged, but this is Al's refresher weekend, and everything centres on him. I'm not sure yet whether this is deCillo's ironic prespective on his story, or his own blind spot. What I am certain about is the clumsiness of his narrative method, his refusal to trust the intelligence of his audience. for example, at one point, Al stops at a car-rental firm called 'Circle'. We get it, Al's life and humanity has been reduced to a circular routine. Just in case we missed it, the camera closes in on car keys with the label 'Circle' on them. And, for the thickos at the back of the class, he stops on the firm's sign as Al drives off. I'm not saying the idea of the circle - also referring to the magic circle Al find himself in, and his attempts to turn back the aging process - isn't important. it's just - trust us! You don't have to show Al literally playing with fire to suggest he's playing with fire! Visually, the film, in its preference for long shots and a muted green/grey colour spectrum, reminds me of Bob Rafelson's classic 'Five Easy Pieces', another film that begins on a building sight, and has its hero taking journeys in which he questions his ideas of 'home'. In terms of quality and impact, however, the only real comparison is in the acting. John Turturro gives another incredible performance, deceptively simple, unshowy: he is one of the few actors so recognisably human you could justifiably call him an Everyman.
Rating: 
Summary: A workaholics therapy session
Review: After watching this film, I got the most magical feeling. It reminded me that there can be life outside of the everyday hustle and bustle, and that there is a child in all of us. All too often we ignore our inner child and get caught up in our concrete jungle lifestyles. We live this life only once and this movie showed me that we must not ignore the simpler things in life, like collecting moonlight in a box or getting in touch with mother nature. To feel sunlight on your face, water cascade against your body or dance till the sun comes up, is what this movie gave me. It reminded me to slow down and take some time to get back in touch with my senses and to watch how I treat others, sounds heavy but this movie has excellent acting and many messages. I have watched this movie 3 times and have found something new in each viewing. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Rating: 
Summary: It Pales Toward the End
Review: Al Fountain, as played by John Turturro, is the ultimate conformist: rigid in manner, square in wardrobe (pressed pants and button-down white shirt), and unable to blur the line between his middle-management status and his labor crew. Cocksure that he is a fount of wise epithets, he drives the backroads in his rental car barking out clever epigrams--actually middling self-help rules for success. Though he might fancy himself published in Bartlett's one day, his middle-brow musings are more Reader's Digest. On a dusty, unfamiliar road, Al very nearly collides with "the Kid." As played by Sam Rockwell,this buckskin-clad fellow is part Johnny Appleseed, part Peter Pan, and part Al Fountain's own repressed inner child. Fountain scolds "the Kid" for having recklessly stopped his car in a blind spot, and then somehow finds himself accompanying "the Kid" back to his half-built modular home. From this eccentric "meet cute" scenario, Fountain and his new friend are attached at the hip. Al is taught to tear off his tie, unbutton his shirt, and, most disturbingly, loosen his morals. I enjoyed watching the give-and-take between Turturro and Rockwell. They're both acting their hearts out as a man without a clue and a man without a career, respectively. Each one lacks an essential personality trait--Fountain has no youth (ha,ha), no humor, no spontaneity. Buck, or "the Kid," has no maturity, no daily ties, no stake in society. This is really an Indie cult variation on "Freaky Friday." You just know that both of these guys are going to learn to walk in one another's shoes by the film's end. It's a fun, leisurely paced movie. The acting is precious, and Catherine Keener and Lisa Blount make brief appearances as two nubile and neurotic admirers of Buck and Al. The Keener character is particularly "odd," her eccentricity nearly borders on being socially/emotionally disturbed. When she and Al Fountain do hook up to engage in one night of monkey business, the audience is meant to delight in Fountain's final liberation, his ultimate escape from clock-punching conservatism. However, Al's long-suffering wife and sad,little son have appeared throughout the film as supporting players, waiting back at home to get phone calls from their on-the-road breadwinner. What a shame that in order to escape the rat race, Al Fountain had to become a rat. Despite Turturro's and Keener's characters meeting against the backdrop of a July 4 cookout, there are no fireworks between them. They don't have an immediate, hot, burning connection. It's as if Fountain has stumbled across a willing and ready accomplice, so he goes for it. Rather sad that one of the final memories of this film is the Al character cheating on his family and then heading home to join them--of course, he's supposedly a more joyful, more relaxed, more understanding guy. I guess that's the recipe for a long and happy marriage in director DiCillo's eyes: If a husband is feeling confined and misunderstood, take a week away from the homefront and find a cute chippie. You can face the battle-axe and the offspring with refreshed energy. I'm taking two stars away from this amiable, engaging film because it doesn't show Turturro embracing a newfound, better self. Instead, it showcases him as a new man with a secretive, unforgivable action. He doesn't go back to his family with just a box of moonlight; he returns with the beginning suitcase of emotional baggage.
Rating:
Summary: A Beautiful, Charming Movie
Review: Box of Moonlight is the type of movie that after you watch you want to see it again. It is a comedy-drama about an uptight engineer that learns life is a lot better when you take chances and have fun. Overall, Box of Moonlight was a nice movie and I would recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: Underground Classic
Review: Box of Moonlight, by Tom diCillo, offers a refreshingly heartwarming overview of the commonly overlooked joys of life. Taking us on the eye-opening journey of an uptight engineer, this movie never fails to satisfy the child within. DiCillo managed to create a movie that is cunningly mystifying and strangely unique. I would highly recommend this feature to anyone trying to find happiness in their lives.
Rating:
Summary: Underground Classic
Review: Box of Moonlight, by Tom diCillo, offers a refreshingly heartwarming overview of the commonly overlooked joys of life. Taking us on the eye-opening journey of an uptight engineer, this movie never fails to satisfy the child within. DiCillo managed to create a movie that is cunningly mystifying and strangely unique. I would highly recommend this feature to anyone trying to find happiness in their lives.
Rating:
Summary: Great feel good movie
Review: I rarely buy DVDs but I bought this and have never regretted it.
I never get tired of seeing and laughing with this quirky yet profound movie. It ranks right up there in my top ten. Turturro is at his absolute best and Sam Rockwell is amazing. The interaction between the two is top entertainment. Listening to the director commentary is also incredible. This is really one of the entertaining movies I have ever seen...
Rating:
Summary: ~This is such a fun movie~
Review: I really enjoyed this movie, so much so that I have purchased it as gifts for a lot of people. I am surprised how many people have not heard of this movie. I first saw it on the Sundance channel and had to buy it for myself. John Turturro is outstanding as usual, as a stick-in the mud kinda guy that finds himself in a dream-like experience with some very quirky and fun-loving people. If you want to escape the boredom of reality, check this out!
Rating:
Summary: A very pleasant suprise !
Review: I saw this film at a filmclub. Didn't know what it was and enjoyed every minute of it. It is a slow going film, but don't let that scare you from watching this hidden gem. It was to me a very uplifting film, especially when you discover what was in the box. I loved it and i belive you will too.
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