5 years after the original film, the spinoff BIRD BOX BARCELONA brings few revelations to a potentially interesting story.
Having been in Barcelona just a couple months ago, I spent more time trying to figure out where they were in the city than I did becoming involved in the characters. Not good.
Sandra Bullock is nowhere in sight.
Mario Casas is good as Sebastian, a young father on the run from the nasty otherworldly creatures (beings? whatever...) with his daughter Anna (Alejandra Howard) at his side.
But things aren't quite what they seem.
Clusters of humans are trying to survive around the world, blindfolded anytime they are outside. One glance at the entities causes the viewer to experience true joy and then kill themselves instantly.
The film does manage to get creative with some of those victims, at least showing more imagination than M. Night's botched execution of the same concept in his worst film, "The Happening".
A select group of people seem to be working with the intruders, tracking down and forcing them to look upon them.
The film's most effective moments, by far, are flashbacks to when the world first started experiencing the phenomenon. Sebastian and his family are pulled into the crisis as he tries to escape work and get to them in a terrific sequence. The trailer smartly focuses on that portion of the film. If only the rest of the movie was that good. All that tension evaporates as we get back to blindfolded folks stumbling around.
Comparisons to the "A Quiet Place" films are unavoidable, and they are not flattering to Bird Box. There is more tension in any ten minutes of either "Quiet Place" film than the full two hours here set in Spain.
I really liked Georgina Campbell (Black Mirror) as Claire, a doctor protecting a young German tourist Sofia, well played by Naila Schuberth. Their scenes with Sebastian are the best in the film.
But there are few surprises and any anticipation to learn more about the entity are left in the swirling, levitating debris every time they appear. Special effects are good, not great and there's very little suspense.
If you want to see people trying to escape danger with a sense of urgency for two hours, watch "World War Z" again. THAT'S a thriller.
This is just a lazy spinoff with a few good scenes and an ending that sets up many more spinoffs. Let's hope the next one doesn't leave me looking at the scenery for most of its running time.
BIRD BOX BARCELONA gets a C.
(Spanish, dubbed in English)
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