The Box

[Robbie Comeau]

http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/thebox/

What is this? Not only did they steal/buy music from Saw, but they took the idea form the original short "The Black Button," which can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrKnhOJ-R80

Robbie

 

[Batutta]

http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/thebox/

What is this? Not only did they steal/buy music from Saw, but they took the idea form the original short "The Black Button," which can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrKnhOJ-R80

Robbie

From Imbd--

Director Richard Kelly wrote a script based on the 1970 short story "Button, Button" by author Richard Matheson.

Who's stealing from who?

 

[Robbie Comeau]

Well, the black button short on youtube...What will happen with that?

Robbie

 

[Batutta]

Well, the black button short on youtube...What will happen with that?

Robbie

Either it was in public domain so they could legally use it, they bought the rights so they could use it, or they are using it illegally. Anyway, Richard Kelly had been adapting this for many years, preceding that short film. From an interview--

What made you want to adapt this particular Richard Matheson short story?

This story just stuck with me. I read it as a kid and I went and optioned it about six years ago from Mr. Matheson himself.

 

[KyleProhaska]

Ryan Dunlap told me this idea was in an old Twilight zone episode.

 

[Steve Laramie]

Not speaking for the people who made the short film. But here is my guess on what happened. They probably submitted the idea to a studio and the studio denied it but then did a spin off of it without paying them. Happens all the time and it sucks.

 

[Cassius]

A quick search tells me it's not public domain, and the makers of the short claim to have not known of the other versions. But it's not exactly a unique, out there idea that no one else could have thought of.

And yeah, there was a Twilight Zone episode which the short's author was involved with.