A Decent Film If It Is Not Compared With Another Film With The Same Premise

Rating: 7/10 (23 May 2019)

This is an edited review from one posted by this viewer over three months ago. At the time I gave this film a thumbs up, but I was not completely fair and did not offer the review in my complete format. This was because of having previously viewed Krasinski's, "A Quite Place". After writing hundreds of reviews this was the first time I can recall ever comparing two films directly. That is why it was unfair. This viewer has always treated films / series as individual works of art. Hence follows my review. Bier has helmed an exceptional thriller. Excellent direction, cinematography, screenplay, score and acting. All the artists involved deliver superlative performances. In particular Bullock and Malkovich stand out. The plot revolves around a women named Malorie who is independent, content with solitude and pregnant. Right from the beginning we learn that an ominous presence has created a world of madness, destruction and suicide. We learn that there is however a safe community from the presence that is accessible by river, but it is unwise to involve children in the trip. We then flash back to five years earlier when the chaos is just beginning around the world and then hits home. This ends up landing Malorie at the home of Douglas, who seems to know that danger is eminent. The plot then flashes back and forth between the trip down the river and the time spent at Douglas' home. Random individuals seek safety at the home, one being another pregnant women, and the individuals collectively determine that sight is the key to the presence driving people insane. As people come and go from the home danger always seems to follow and Douglas' self preservation is constantly being tested. On a blind trip to a supermarket an incident occurs which tips off Malorie to the fact that birds can sense when danger is near. Both Malorie and the other women deliver their children, a boy and a girl. Eventually a visitor arrives and Douglas' instincts are confirmed. This individual destroys the safe haven leaving only Malorie, the two children and Tom left. Some survivors of the presence have embraced it as beautiful and have become psychotic wanting all to experience the beauty. An encounter with these individuals leads to the film focused completely on the river, as now only Malorie and the two children known as boy and girl, and have been navigating at this point for nearly two days. During their journey the three remain blindfolded and carry a box with birds in it to warn them of the presence. Their travel down river includes an encounter with a psychotic embracer of the presence, gathering supplies, running into an obstacle which overturns their boat and finally the treacherous rapids which are a indicator that the safe community is just beyond if they can get past the rapids. The plot is crisp, unique, clever, thrilling, sublime, poetic and has a powerful ending. This is one of the best films Netflix has dropped. It is memorable and a magnificent film in it's genre.