“Welcome to the Blumhouse,” a collection of four new thrillers, was introduced this October on Amazon Prime Video. One of the films, Black Box, directed by Emmanual Osei-Kuffour Jr., tells the jarring story of a man’s fear of dependence and forgetfulness. Her Campus at UCLA sat down with the director at a Blumhouse round table, where he discussed the conception and inspiration for the film.
Some view this film as an eerie form of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind as Nolan goes through an experimental treatment to attempt to remember his past before the accident. Black Box is an unconventional dive into the world of sci-fi as the true thrill of the film resides within ourselves and our own fears. In addition to its admirable cinematography, another undeniably effective aspect of the film was the score: composer Brandon Roberts worked wonders as his chilling compositions complemented that of the intensity onscreen.
When asked about the inspiration of the film itself, Osei-Kuffour Jr. spoke about how he wanted to portray the Black Box to be something in everyone’s minds- a mental home to all of our dreams, fears, qualms and worries. The film also explores extremities – the extremities of fear of change, fear of abandonment and the extent to which parents will sacrifice themselves for their children. On one hand, Nolan makes efforts to reintroduce a sense of normalization to Ava’s life by taking her to a sushi restaurant. But on the other hand, Lillian makes efforts to revitalize her dead son in the physicality of Nolan. The film raises the question: at what point is the sacrifice enough?
Overall, Black Box is the story of “a flawed man who gets a second chance at life to be a better man for his daughter,” in the words of the director himself. It invites audiences to confront our greatest fears and to climb out of our mental black boxes to reevaluate the sacrifices we are willing to make for the ones we love. It explores the hubris of mankind, the desire to improve the extent of ethicality this improvement entails. This “think-outside-of-the-box” mindset is certainly one that many audiences need to explore at this time.