A Quiet Place meets The Mist meets The Happening meets The Road meets I Am Legend (specifically with one of the alternating endings). That’s a quick and easy way to describe the effective Netflix release Bird Box. The A Quiet Place comparison is what many people are going to really compare this film to because of its proximity in release dates. I would have been upset if this was a cheap rip-off of, perhaps, the biggest surprise hit of 2018, replacing not making noise with not being able to see as the change. But Bird Box is based on a 2014 debut novel of the same name by Josh Malerman, years before previews of A Quiet Place were even created. And because of this, it makes the movie even more enjoyable because you get to wonder about Malerman’s inspirations rather than assuming that it was the aforementioned novel that he was trying to emulate.

Told in the apocalyptic near future, Bird Box weaves in and out of a flashback story set five years ago. Set somewhere in the United States, probably in the northeast in an urban location that is not far from a major river, we meet Malorie (Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side, Speed), a mother with two five-year-old children (named boy and girl) who have tight blindfolds around their eyes and are being instructed in no understated terms that they are never to take off the blindfolds as they go down the river. She teaches the two young children about sound, letting them know if they are in open or closed spaces. She hooks large pools of thick string to a home base so that she and the children can always return to the point of origin. They prepare to board a rowboat where Malorie will attempt to paddle down the river to a haven.

Five years prior, Malorie is pregnant. And we learn early on that maybe she doesn’t want to be. There is no man in her life. Sister Jessica (Sarah Paulson – F/X’s Amerian Horror Story) is with Malorie for a routine visit where Malorie isn’t interested in learning the baby’s sex. She talks about drinking alcohol in front of her doctor and showing a genuine disinterest in anything with the baby. It’s enough for her doctor to bring up adoption as an option, handing her a brochure that Malorie intently ponders. Malorie is also out of touch with the world as she doesn’t pay much attention to the news. So it comes as some surprise to her when Jessica mentions a phenomenon happening in Asia in which people are going crazy and killing themselves. But that’s in Russia, so why worry? However, on their way out of the hospital, they see a woman smashing her head vehemently into a glass window and other events that are out of normal. On the drive, Jessica sees something and suddenly goes crazy by flooring the gas pedal and not stopping at stoplights or stop signs before flipping their SUV over. Malorie is temporarily trapped in the car and is helpless as she sees her sister escape from the car just to purposefully step in front of a moving semi, meeting a violent death.

Shifting back and forth from this time period to the present day (frequently at times), we don’t learn a ton yet, and there is a Stephen King kind of intrigue involved throughout the movie because you aren’t entirely certain of what is causing these people to act the ways that they do. But we do learn that it has something to with what they see. These people seem terrified by whatever it is that they see that causes their eyes to become mesmerized. Most of the affected, ultimately, end up taking their own lives. But not everybody reacts to the epidemic once they are exposed to it in the same way. And that is part of the fascination too. It becomes as much about staying away from the affected as it is figuring out who is affected and who you can trust. So there is certainly some influence from The Walking Dead in this movie.

Malorie escapes into the home of a surly Douglas (John Malkovich – In the Line of Fire, Dangerous Liaisons), disgruntled neighbor Greg (D.B. Wong – Jurassic World, HBO’s Oz), good guy Tom (Trevante Rhodes – 12 Strong, Moonlight), comic relief Charlie (Lil Rel Howery – Get Out, Tag), fellow pregnant woman Olympia (Danielle MacDonald – Patti Cake$), and a handful of others. Like with any group, there are plenty of dynamics, augmented by the stressful situation that the group finds itself in. Decisions need to be made on food rations, which new people to let in who come knocking on the door, the course of action, etc. What they can agree on is that people become affected by the epidemic through their eyes. They see something, and then it goes crazy. What isn’t known is if that is something in the sky or by looking at someone who is affected. So anything involving the eyes becomes an issue. They block out all the sunlight in Douglas’s home. When welcoming new people, they make them put a cover over their faces. How they know it’s safe for said individual to take off the cover is uncertain. Yes, there are some plotholes in this film. But unlike the most recent film I reviewed (2018’s The Mule), this movie flowed. Whereas The Mule repeatedly just puts Clint Eastwood in different situations with little relation from one scene to the next, Bird Box doesn’t feel that way. There is cohesion. There is progress. When there is the need for a break, we transition back to Malorie and the two children on the river, wherewith each visit, we are further along on their trip (two hours on the river, six hours on the river, eight hours on the river, etc.).

I am surprised that Sandra Bullock signed on for a movie that would have a minimal release and be mostly watched by people in the comforts of their own homes. But I’m glad she did. Director Susanne Bier (Serena, Things We Lost in the Fire) definitely could have gone with a lesser-known star. I didn’t watch this film because it had Bullock (though it increased the intrigue for sure). However, after the movie’s first scene, where her version of Malorie brings the intensity and sets the tone for the remainder of the movie, I couldn’t have imagined anyone else leading the way.

This is a cool film and should be seen.

Plot 9/10
Character Development 7/10
Character Chemistry 8/10
Acting 7.5/10
Screenplay 9.5/10
Directing  9/10
Cinematography 10/10
Sound 8/10
Hook and Reel 10/10
Universal Relevance 8/10
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