“Bird Box” (2018)
Prescient tale of worldwide hysteria.
Prescient tale of worldwide hysteria.
Bird Box was the 16th all time feature length release from Danish filmmaker Susanne Bier at the time of it’s release 5 years ago, and would become the most watched film on Netflix during it’s immediate online release, retaining this much vaunted position until 2021 and the release of the Rawson Marshall directed Red Notice. Before the catharsis of a rare happy ending, Bier navigates this apocalyptic horror through the choppy waters of a non-linear and jagged timeline that sees a past and present five years in the life of “Malorie” (Sandra Bullock) as well as 42 fragmented hours in a rowing boat. Trusting to luck or good fortune, faith, promises of sanctity and the sheer determination to stay alive and protect the vulnerable inside her river life raft, no-one can look at or see the world around them, a world full of “bio-warfare” leading to mass psychosis, hysteria and instant suicidal desires.
“Don’t go outside. Don’t use social media” scream the headlines from a television screen that is soon ignored out of fear by the inhabitants thrown together inside a strangers house, sheltering from the storm of horrific madness happening in a world they now cannot see for fear of coming into any contact whatsoever with whatever is causing this instant warrant for suicidal death. “Greg” (BD Wong) is named as the owner of the house now with every window boarded or papered over to prevent sight of the otherworldly entity outside, but I always felt it was the home of “Douglas” (John Malkovich) who dominates the domestic setting with everything being a “mistake” and that there are “Two types of people. Assholes, and the dead”. Malkovich is excellent in a house that, whether he owns it not, has become somewhat of a safe house of strangers with “Gary” (Tom Hollander), “Olympia” (Danielle Macdonald) and “Tom” (Trevante Rhodes) amongst the most vocal, helpful and with more reasons to live than most.
Trevante Rhodes is arguably the heartbeat of the film.
From the confines of a spacious house that is safely protected from the outside world we continually switch to a timeline of the present day, and Malorie desperately trying to navigate a river that will lead to the permanent safe haven promised via radio transmissions from fellow survivors. Here the film comes into its own as neither Malorie nor the two young children accompanying her on this perilous river voyage can see or look at the outside world, so the journey is taken in blindfold, and hoping to the luck and good fortune and the faith in the safe haven that awaits them.
Highly recommended.
Thanks for reading. Just for larks as always, and always a human reaction rather than spoilers galore. My three most recently published film articles are linked below or there’s well over 250 blog articles (with 500+ individual film reviews) within my film library from which to choose:
“John Wick” — Chapter 4 (2023)
The hitman legend continues.medium.com
“Supercell” (2023)
Father and Son tale. Watched together by a Father and a Son.medium.com
“Boston Strangler” (2023)
Underwhelming revisit of a real life horror.medium.com