Stream Your Heart Out: “Birdbox”

Bird Box has been on Netflix for over a month now and it would be hard to argue that the show is anything but controversial. Between the slew of memes it has spawned and the overwhelming amount of arguments it has given way too, the Netflix original starring Sanda Bullock packs quite a punch. For many the show was slow, underwhelming, or just overall boring. However, the depth of the film, regardless of one’s preference on film genre, is quite prominent. But, this (arguably) suspenseful film keeps these aspects hidden in a way that even after multiple viewings one may overlook and miss entirely.

The premise of the film, as suggested in the trailer, comes down to monsters that will kill you if you see them. So, in an effort to survive, Bullock and her children use blindfolds to protect themselves from the devastation. Now, at first glance, maybe the movie is just a remake of its predecessors of similar ideas (A Quiet Place, Hush). But consider this: how many things do we, as a species in general, overlook to shield ourselves from guilt, devastation, and hurt? Racism, homophobia, and mental illness are only a few of the many things that we find ourselves choosing to not look at because these things hold stigmas due to differences. And anytime something is different, it’s seen as monstrous.

Imagine suffering from your own demons inside your head only to have the society you live in shun you into oblivion. Afterall, what you can’t see can’t hurt you, right?