It's fair to say that 2018 has been an absolutely huge year for horror fans out there, and we've seen some absolutely inspired works show up on the big screen and smaller ones. Just of the top of my head, I can confidently say that movies like Hereditary, A Quiet Place, and the new Halloween sequel will be remembered by aficionados for years to come, and Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House has proven that audiences can respond well to long-form, episodic horror on TV.

However, over the holidays the Christmas movies can often get a bit twee and sentimental, and if you have macabre sensibilities, then watching stuff like Elf, Home Alone, and It's A Wonderful Life can get a bit dreary. If that's the case then I have some good news for you; a new horror movie has just been released on Netflix, and judging by the reaction from people on social media, it's safe to say that it's managed to scare the pants off most viewers.

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Bird Box is a post-apocalyptic film directed by Susanne Bier, based on the 2014 novel by Josh Malerman. The film follows a woman played by Sandra Bullock who, along with a pair of children must make it through a forest and river blindfolded to avoid mysterious monsters which can drive anyone who sees them insane.

Commenting on the feature, director Susanne Bier stated: "I think watching a movie like that allows us to play that game, but because it’s in a confined space of two hours, you can do it relatively freely. I think it’s like fairy tales for kids. They can be really harrowing, but I think in a way that’s also kids addressing the most dangerous thing they can think of, the scariest thing they can think of, meeting a witch on the way."

"I think for us, dystopian post-apocalyptic movies are a bit like that. That world that we fear is coming to the end, how am I going to behave and do I understand any characters behaving in a certain way? Part of what drew me to this was firstly it has a female protagonist, which very few of those movies has. It has a badass female protagonist. She’s hard and she’s brutal. She does whatever it takes for those kids to survive and it’s not always pleasant. I think that was really interesting."

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On social media, the reactions to the movie have been intense. One Twitter user wrote: "Bird Box on Netflix is honestly the most terrifying but incredible movie I’ve ever seen," while another person added: "#BirdBox is honestly terrifying. Apocalyptic movies freak me out."

So there you have it; if you're in the mood to watch something eerie and creepy this Christmas, then why not try out this spooky tale? It'll make a change from The Santa Clause at least ...

Netflix's new horror film featuring Sandra Bullock is ‘the scariest thing’ people have ever seen