A supernatural thriller has premiered this holiday season and one doesn’t even have to put on pants to watch it! Sandra Bullock stars as Malorie in Bird Box. She’s a painter and an incredibly gifted one. Malorie is also pregnant and it is a puzzling pregnancy.
That is illustrated in the film’s first moments when Malorie’s sister Jessica (Sarah Paulson) arrives and wants to take her to the doctor’s office for her check-up. There is a palpable disconnect between Malorie and the life growing inside her. That is an important contrast because soon, all life will be threatened by the most puzzling of sources. It causes a catapult-type emotional seismic stir in Malorie that is crucial for how this drama will play out by the time it concludes.
Directed by Susanne Bier, from a screenplay by Eric Heisserer—and based on the novel by Josh Malerman—the helmer uses the simplest of plot devices to let us know that trouble is brewing. Before heading to the docs, Jessica urges Malorie to put down her paint brush and turn on the news because the most incredible of situations is unfolding in Eastern Europe.
Out of nowhere, people are trying to kill themselves and tens of thousands have been successful. Malory dismisses it as “over there” problems and goes about her day with her sis. As is the case with most “over there” problems, it quickly becomes a “right here” issue as she is leaving the hospital. A woman is banging her head on the glass, desperately trying to end it all. Guess what, folks? The end is nigh.
The film has Bullock as our headliner, but Bird Box also features a typically commanding turn by John Malkovich as Douglas, and a sensitive performance by Trevante Rhodes as Tom, a man who is thrust into Malorie’s life when all hell breaks loose. See, a group of people have found refuge in Greg’s (BD Wong) home… who is Douglas’ next door neighbor.
Sarah Paulson is given second billing in the flick, which is surprising given that she is in it for no more than three minutes. Props to Lil Rel Howery, who follows up his scene stealing turn in Uncle Drew as the heroic Charlie. Also terrific, in that stuck in the house as they figure out what is going on and how to survive this insanity, is Jacki Weaver and even Machine Gun Kelly!
Like many post-apocalyptic movies (worth their salt), Bird Box raises a slew of questions and makes the audience ponder some serious situational issues. If survival meant going out in the world and we know now that these “things” feast on our imaginations—but only if we see them—would you go out? Is a blindfold enough to stave off the terror? And on a related note, do you trust GPS and modern cars’ proximity sensors?!
It also, for those of us who think about such things, gets to the heart of every single individual and how we trust our myriad of senses that do not include sight. It is a fascinating concept and one that is largely executed in such a manner that has Bird Box being a solid suspenseful ride. It has several scream at the screen moments—a definite trait of a solid horror/thriller.
The payoff is OK… not bad but not out of this world, pun intended. It’s worth the journey to let Bullock lead us down a rabbit hole of horror where the killer of masses is ourselves and the unknown around every corner is our worst nightmare. Adding in a few layers of terror is the fact that there’s a segment of the population who is affected by these unseen monsters in the most bizarre of ways. They aren’t committing suicide. In fact, they are urging you to and doing so in the most horrific and alluring manner. It’s another layer of scariness that only adds to the tension that is ever-building in Bird Box.
Bullock is fantastic. From the opening moments of the film where she, in merely a few lines, gives us all we need to know. Her character has a rich arc and the Oscar winner plays it perfectly. There are plenty of touching, heart in your throat moments that are always a huge asset to a film in this genre. You must give the audience something to cling to, some sort of hope. When it is humanity being its most human, that always packs the most punch.
The film has been compared to A Quiet Place and that is simultaneously fair and unfair. The premise is similar—some sort of creatures/invaders have attacked the earth and the fear generated by the film relates back to our senses. In A Quiet Place it was sound. If they heard you, you were likely dead soon after. In Bird Box, something about seeing the entity causes you to immediately take your life, often in the most fantastical of ways. That is probably where the comparisons should stop. A Quiet Place was a study in the familial and how the institution of a clan would respond to the end of the world. Bird Box is more of a survivalist story that happens to be about a mother and two kids trying to make it to a safe haven. Also, in A Quiet Place, there is no safe haven. Period.
As for the title, where does it come from? No answers here! That’s major spoiler territory. What I can tell you is that when it comes to a thriller to watch with the ones you love this holiday season, pop on Netflix, pull up Bird Box and prepare to be swept away to a land we all hope never truly exists.
Grade: B