During the last weeks of December, it was hard to avoid the phenomenon that was “Bird Box.” Scrolling through Twitter, almost every tweet had something to do with the film. There is no debate that because of social media the film was able to reach a wider audience.

However, despite the viral promotion of the film, most people I’ve talked to don’t believe it was a good movie. One person even described it as “a waste of two hours.” This came as a shock to me. How can something so exposed on social media be this widely disliked?

“Bird Box” is a Netflix original film based on a book of the same name from 2014. The story focuses on an apocalyptic event that infects people through sight. For the majority of the film, we follow Malorie, played by Sandra Bullock, in two different time periods. The first being whenever the event first happens and then five years later where she is in care of two young children.

To start off with the compliments, I think the film does a great job at causing suspense. For most of the scenes, I would be on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. It did a good job at keeping everything exciting.

Another great part of the film was the performances by most of the major actors. Sandra Bullock probably gives one of her best performances in years. Other standouts included Trevante Rhodes as Tom and John Malkovich as Douglas. Rhodes was probably one of the most likable characters and through his acting made the audience care for his well-being. Malkovich was great in the opposite effect. Malkovich’s Douglas was probably the most hated character in the entire film but was just a testament to his acting abilities. His line delivery just adds to his despicable character and makes you hate him in the best possible way.

However, not every character felt necessary to the film. Characters like Felix, played by Machine Gun Kelly, and Cheryl, played by Jacki Weaver, left no barring on the plot. Most of the supporting cast could’ve been dropped.

Along with that, some of the film could’ve been cut down. The film has a two hour runtime but could’ve easily been dropped down to one hour and 45 minutes. But, this isn’t too major of a complaint.

Overall, “Bird Box” is a good, enjoyable film experience. Though many may have not liked the film, I think it is worth a viewing. Compared to many of the other Netflix originals on the platform, “Bird Box” feels like something that could’ve been shown in theaters.

Rating: 8 out 10