‘Chicken Field Barcelona’ assessment: A tiresome, miserable Netflix follow-up

The premise of “Chicken Field,” the 2018 thriller starring Sandra Bullock, was all the time a downer: A daunting power descends on earth that, if noticed, makes the viewer kill themselves.

For some deranged motive all people watched that film at Christmas. 

Oh, the coal they found.

“Chicken Field” was a poor soul’s “A Quiet Place” through which, fairly than noise being perilous, the hazard got here from merely opening your eyes. 

However its saving grace was the extreme drive of Sandra Bullock as Malorie to guard two youngsters by any means vital. 

The desire to stay is lacking from Netflix’s not-quite-sequel “Chicken Field Barcelona,” and so is our will to observe.

From the offset there’s a resigned feeling of “OK, we get it” as scared Spaniards naked their ojos solely to hurl themselves off a constructing or stroll into visitors. The repetitive deaths are neither surprising nor scary — they’re solely miserable.

“Barcelona,” which is usually in Spanish, shouldn’t be a sequel a lot as a siesta, set through the early days after the creatures’ arrival. The chaos overtaking the streets and grim-faced information anchors on TV are absolutely meant to recall the primary few months of 2020, which is what all people desires to do that summer time.

The No. 1 grownup this time is Sebastian (Mario Casas) who’s making an attempt to maintain his daughter Anna secure. However there’s a darkish distinction between Malorie and Sebastian: He’s one among quite a lot of seers, who’re in a position to stare on the monsters after which slavishly persuade others to take off their blindfolds to their deaths.

Suffice it to say, Sebastian shouldn’t be an simply embraceable hero.

Additionally explored with the dexterity of a cinderblock is the query of whether or not the creatures (that we nonetheless by no means see) are angels or aliens. 

Aside from these appendages from co-writers/administrators Álex Pastor and David Pastor, “Barcelona” is extra of the identical. Dad and daughter will predictably have a run-in with a shadowy group hiding out in a cellar or an deserted condo (one man is Diego Calva from “Babylon”), we hear their horrible story after which a few of them die — clearly. 

The movie’s sole enchancment is that explosions and bus chases look top-dollar, which isn’t all the time the case for Netflix’s movie choices. But what do blown up buildings matter in an typically nihilistic film with no potential victory in sight for its characters?

I do know we stay an period obsessive about movie and TV “universes,” however should there be one about suicide-inducing monsters?