The Netflix film debuted in late December, Bird Box has become a phenomenon as of late, through the many memes circulating around social media, featuring scenes from the movie. This movie, based on Josh Malerman’s 2014 novel, featured a woman (Sandra Bullock) embarking on a dangerous journey to get herself and two children to safety after the world ascended into chaos, following the introduction of invisible creatures that somehow lead those who lay eyes on them to see things so horrific that they either commit suicide or go about forcing others to see. The main problem that is faced in this movie is the loss of sight. To ensure that they won’t see this creature, the characters wear blindfolds throughout the film.

Bird Box has been a topic of conversation among the students, mainly through the memes that have taken over social media. The plethora of memes featuring scenes from the movie have brought the movie a lot of publicity, however, the star-studded cast may have also been a factor in the film’s huge success. Academy Award winner Sandra Bullock played the leading role of Malorie Hayes, while actors and actresses such as Sarah Paulson, Trevante Rhodes, Machine Gun Kelly, John Malkovich and many more made up the supporting cast.

“I liked the movie, it had really good acting and was produced very well. I like that it had Sandra Bullock in it,” senior Robert Revels said.

Bird Box has gained a large following with the memes and the “Bird Box Challenge,” which has brought a great amount of attention and success to the Netflix film. There have been several reports of Bird Box fans having been injured while doing the so-called Bird Box Challenge, which is where people go about their daily lives while wearing a blindfold as seen in the movie.

“I think the challenge is goofy, but also dangerous as one girl got into a car crash while doing this,” sophomore Brooke Bailey said.

A popular theory as to the hidden meaning of the film is that it is a reflection of mental illness in our society. While there are other theories to the meaning of the film, this one seems to be the most widely accepted. The characters who see the monster and rather than committing suicide, go on trying to force others to see, represent the mentally ill people in our society. They spend the movie trying to make others see; they want others to pay attention to them and understand what they see and what they go through. The blindfolds symbolize ignorance and society’s refusal to acknowledge the issue of mental illness. An issue that has recently been brought to light by extreme acts of violence at the hands of those with mental afflictions.

“I think the underlying meaning of this movie is that we should all be thankful for the life we have, and also for our vision because without it we’re vulnerable and useless,” freshman Victoria Rawls.