Bird Box (2018)

What’s scarier than a monster you never get to see? In Bird Box, it’s a house full of strangers arguing about curtains for a big chunk of 124 minutes. The rules stay fuzzy on purpose, and the middle drags while everybody waits for the next supply run. Sandra Bullock is the reason to stick around. Her Malorie is cold, practical and a little scary herself, a mom who calls the kids Boy and Girl like names are a luxury she can’t afford. The river scenes, blindfolded on fast water with two little kids, are legit tense and look great. John Malkovich plays Douglas like a man who’s been grumpy since birth. Trevante Rhodes brings real warmth as Tom. It landed a 64% with critics and a 6.6 on IMDb, which feels about right for a great idea that runs out of road. A 5.4 because Bullock is terrific and the concept is scarier as a pitch than as a story. $7.48 says you hear birds making a racket outside tomorrow and stop to wonder what they know.

What works: Bullock gives a tough, unsentimental performance, and the blindfolded river scenes are tense in a way the house scenes never match.

What doesn’t: The house stretch drags, the rules of the threat stay vague, and most of the side characters exist just to make bad choices.

Who it’s for: Streaming night viewers who want a tense survival story with a big star and don’t need every answer.