According to Rotten tomatoes, Songbird, a movie directed by Adam Mason is rated 11% and IMDB rated it as 4 out of 10. Simultaneously, many critics said this movie is insensitive, distasteful, and exploitative for using the pandemic as the object that drives the plot.
This movie was released in 11th December 2020 in the UK and is produced by Michael Bay who is known to produce big budget movies including the transformers series. However, this movie only has $700,000–2.5 million budget according to variety which reported that “Songbird” was announced in mid-May as a low-budget production that would shoot in Los Angeles.
The movie takes place in the United States of America especially Los Angeles, four years after the pandemic of Covid19 started.This time, the virus has gone more deadly affecting not only the lung but also the brain. People are required to do daily health scans from their smartphone. If they are contracted the virus, they will be taken to a concentration camp called the Q zone by the department of sanitation. This department will use any force necessary to take the infected and its family to a place where they can never leave and are left to die.
In this situation, a type of people who are called the immunes emerge. These are the ones who are allowed to go out around the streets freely like Nico played Aj Kappa who is a bike messenger. He is an essential worker with responsibilities delivering goods to wealthy individuals. Like many of dystopian society, the class issue is still one of the topics discussed in this movie. What are the privileges of being wealthy?
Viewers will meet the Griffin family, a father & a mother who has a child with autoimmune disease. William Griffin is an ex record music producer and with Piper Griffin they are now running a business. They are selling immunity wristbands to wealthy individuals. This yellow band contains a personal and health record of an individual who is immune from the virus. People who are having this wristband are allowed to move freely around the country. This movie reveals that William Griffin is not immune and is having an affair with May, a singer who makes living online through streaming via zoom. This caused Piper to worry as they have a daughter who is immune compromised.
In another story, Nico is having a relationship with Sara, a young artist who lives with her abuelita (grandmother) Lita. Nico and Sara played by Sofia Carson gives the viewers a look into a dating scene during the pandemic. They have never met each other but are having a relationship through the phone. On one night, Lita, the grandmother, was suddenly coughing and feeling ill. Sara instantly knows that her grandmother is contracted with the virus. She rushed to call Nico to inform him about the situation. Nico is worried that Sara will be taken by the department of sanitation lead by Emmet Harland, another immune who was once just a truck garbage driver to the Q zone.
Eventually, this led to a discovery by Nico that he has been transporting illegal immunity wristbands from the Griffin. When he attempted to get the wristband for Sara and Lita, he was set up by Piper. He met Harland in the warehouse and was stabbed. When he attempted to escape from Harland henchmen he got help from a random man who lives in the warehouse. This is one of the strange parts in the movie. This makes the movie feel very rushed and the story is not arranged neatly.
Other than Nico, Sara, The Griffin’s and Harland, there are three more supporting characters May, Michael Dozer and Lester. These characters only have a little background story yet somehow the writer attempts to connect all the characters into a beautifully orchestrated story. Sadly, it was not the case. Again, this is another part where the movie feels rushed.
Even the ending doesn’t give us enough closure other than Sara is an immune, William Griffin was shot by Michael Dozer through a weaponized drone, Piper framed his ex husband and Harland as an illegal wristband seller while Lester got Nico immunity wristband. Nico and Sara are finally together and they ride up to Pacific Coast. This movie will leave you with many questions in regards to the Q zone, the department itself, and the immunity wristband. But if you are up for a paranoia inducing movie, try to put this on your list and see if you start gearing up for other pandemic hits after watching this.
The pictures are taken from the screenshot of the movie.
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