This is Emmanuel Osei-debut Kuffour’s full-length feature film as a filmmaker, and it is a 2020 science fiction psychological thriller. The story revolves around an amnesiac who is desperately trying to regain his memories and chooses an unusual method. The memories he starts recalling don’t seem to be his, which is the problem. The principal actors in the ensemble are Donald Elise Watkins, Phylicia Rashad, and Mamoudou Athie. Although the plot is intriguing, if you’ve watched a lot of mind-bending films, you probably already know what’s going on. Spoilers ahead for the Black Box movie’s plot and conclusion.
Black Box| A Plot Summary
What happened to Nolan? Who is he?
Nolan was involved in a tragic car accident together with his wife. Nolan was taken to the hospital in a vegetative state and was believed to be brain dead. His wife passed away immediately. Their daughter Ava, who wasn’t in the car at the time, is very mature about it and makes an effort to remain upbeat.
Dr. Lillian, who is she?
Dr. Lillian has been testing the idea that consciousness can be digitally recorded and then restored inside of another person’s brain. Her research, however, was only theoretical and was not given the go-ahead for actual application.
How did Thomas die? Who is he?
Thomas, Dr. Lillian’s son, died two years ago after falling down the stairs at his apartment. He has proven to be a violent spouse and parent. On one instance while Thomas was beating his wife, his daughter made an attempt to intervene. He strikes his daughter out of anger, and his wife pushes him back in retaliation. Thomas trips and falls and needs to be taken to the hospital right away. A brain EEG was recorded before he was officially pronounced dead. His brain scan is covertly copied by Dr. Lillian and transferred to her Black Box device.
What was done to Nolan by Dr. Lillian?
Dr. Lillian believes that now that Nolan has been brought in and is officially listed as brain dead, this is the ideal body to download Thomas’ mind from, so she proceeds with the unlawful treatment. Although Thomas has actually awakened, it appears that Nolan gets consciousness. Although Nolan is still alive, his consciousness is severely impaired.
Who have we been seeing, Thomas or Nolan, I wonder?
Quick answer| Thomas has a central place in Nolan’s consciousness.
Because Thomas is occupying someone else’s brain, he is not yet able to access his memories. Only when Thomas’ memories are wired back into his mind would the process be finished. Until then, Thomas (who is inhabiting Nolan’s body) is essentially memoryless. Given that Thomas has no memories, not even of who he is, he comes to believe that he is Nolan and is making every effort to remember things for the benefit of Ava, whom he believes to be his daughter.
Ava guesses that her father is having trouble remembering, so she is very understanding and encouraging with him in the hopes that he will soon regain his memory.
What kind of treatment is Dr. Lillian providing?
Insidiously, Dr. Lillian has been waiting for the treatment to be finished so that Thomas can regain access to his memories and take full control of Nolan’s mind and body. Thomas shows up in Dr. Lillian’s office and asks for aid, thinking he is Nolan.
What is the nightmare’s eerie creature?
The spooky entity is Nolan’s fractured subconscious attempting valiantly to expel Thomas’s parasite consciousness. By claiming that the apparition is just his own mind trying to defend him, Dr. Lillian is lying. The faces are initially a blur, but as the therapy goes on, Thomas starts to connect with his memories. That his memories of his wedding and apartment don’t line up with the ones in the photo albums baffles him. He questions whether he was an abusive husband as he recalls the bruises on the nameless woman.
Greg, a close friend of Nolan, disputes these allegations because he is aware of Nolan’s character. Thomas eventually has complete access to all of Nolan’s memories and seizes control of his thoughts. Dr. Lillian is ecstatic to have her son back, and Thomas is now conscious of himself. He is horrified to learn that two years have passed since his death and that he is still alive, although inhabiting another man’s body.
Thomas returns to his wife and makes an effort to mend fences with her. She’s surprised because she’s been living peacefully with her daughter for the past two years and is relieved that Thomas is no longer alive. With Nolan standing there claiming to be her murdered husband, Thomas, her worst dread comes true. Within minutes, he reverts to his aggressive behaviour, barging into the house and insisting on seeing his daughter. Thomas has not yet remembered that his wife pushed him down, causing him to fall and die. Before Thomas can meet his daughter, his wife suddenly knocks him out of consciousness and throws him outside.
How does Nolan appear in front of Ava now?
After Thomas loses consciousness, Nolan briefly regains consciousness and moves to Ava and Greg because he feels safe there. But soon after awakening, Thomas gets in his car and heads to his mother’s house to let her know that he can’t fully control his body and that he saw the monster reflected in his car’s window.
killing the imaginary being in dreams
Dr. Lillian advises Thomas that in order to fully exert control, he must confront the beast and destroy it. She questions whether Nolan could be the ghost. She inserts Thomas inside her device, where he is exposed to Nolan’s damaged psyche. Greg and Ava now appear at Dr. Lillian’s lab and make an effort to halt whatever is occurring.
Thomas is first shocked to discover that the monstrosity is Nolan, but Dr. Lillian commands him to murder the boy, so Thomas begins beating up Nolan’s damaged psyche. Thomas remembers how he died, that he hit his young daughter and was shoved over by his wife, just before he can murder him. Thomas gives up and accepts that his family is happier without him and that he was an abusive father and husband. He leaves the security of the subconscious and becomes disoriented in the night. Nolan reemerges and seizes control of his body and mind in the outside world. He gives his daughter a demonstration of his covert handshake before leaving with Greg and Ava.
What the Black Box Ending Means
The conclusion of Black Box makes clear that Dr. Lillian’s goal was to implant her son’s awareness within Nolan’s head and then persuade her son to assassinate what little of Nolan’s subconscious remained. Nevertheless, as Thomas reflects on his abusive background and understands why his wife is happier without him, he retreats to Nolan’s inner thoughts and becomes lost. Nolan regains all mental control, returns to his daughter, and mourns the loss of his wife while looking forward to being a wonderful father to his daughter.
Greg sees to it that Dr. Lillian is expelled from the medical facility for what she attempted to do to Nolan. Black Box’s climactic scene reveals that Dr. Lillian revives Thomas inside her machine using the brain scan data dump. Damn. Who needs the devil when you have a mother like this? Tom is subjected to countless experiments. He is unable to totally either live or die! Ouch.
What did you think of the Black Box movie’s conclusion? Please leave a comment in the area below.
ALSO READ THIS: Time Loop Films| A Complete 2023 List -Live The Same Day Over
