Though the recent release of Netflix’s new horror film “Bird Box” isn’t the only film to blow up and become the hot topic on social media, it has seemed to leave an impact on viewers. Not only is the film itself controversial, but the seemingly crazy amount of buzz on the film has created theories regarding the streaming network, Netflix.

“Bird Box” is the occurence of a supernatural force that has reaped havok on a small town. Nothing is known about the force for sure other than the fact that ultimately the result of the force is death. Five years after the force drives most of the society’s people to death, a mother, Malorie, and her two children make an attempt to avoid the fate of the others and escape whatever the force is by taking a dangerous journey. Now Malorie must avoid coming face to face with the entity that takes its form in the person’s worst fears. As they pass through the woods using only four senses they finally reach a river that may lead to a place of safety for the family. To make it, they must complete the journey running from danger completely blindfolded and demoted to only four senses.

The movie starring Sandra Bullock is tabbed a horror film and definitely lives up to the label. The beginning of the movie is when the force first makes its contact with the people. However, this type of horror is more psychological rather than upfront with jump scares and gory elements. Though it is known what is going on when the family is faced with a fear, the viewers aren’t able to see what the characters are afraid of. This almost takes away from the overall scare factor of the movie. But the movie is in fact very thrilling and worth the hype just because of the uniqueness and storyline itself of the developed film. The apocalyptic effect of the perilous journey is the perfect hook for thrill seekers.

The film created so much buzz that Netflix was under attack due to memes that flooded social media. In a now deleted tweet that gained 10,000 likes and 3,600 retweets before being taken down, @samiswine claimed that Netflix is “using dozens of fake accounts with suspiciously low follower counts to seed Twitter with viral memes about their movie.” However, like many media controversies, it fell apart and was only a temporary claim. In fact, some of the lowly followed accounts spoke out on their behalf that they were in fact real and not bots.

If the meme craze wasn’t enough, a new challenge was inspired by the movie. The challenge aims to imitate the life of the “Bird Box” characters. Participants try and complete different levels of everyday tasks while blindfolded. As with many new challenges, people try them and take them too far. Many media outlets have already warned of the dangers of participating in the challenge.

With such a thrilling and unique storyline, “Bird Box” is a must-see. It has lived up to the hype and memes surrounding it and taken over the media in all forms.

Rate: 4.5/5

By: Kinsley Morgan, A&E Editor

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