With theaters still struggling due to COVID-19, Netflix has become the main way people are watching movies in 2020. It’s a development that has created big opportunities for smaller titles as social media impact and word-of-mouth allows excellent indies to rise to the top of the pile, and this week’s major benefactor of this is David Marmor’s awesome 1BR.
The plot concerns a young woman who moves into a Los Angeles apartment complex, only to discover that the residents aren’t quite what they appear to be. The summary lays out the film’s psychological thrills as so:
Unable to sleep, tormented by strange noises and threatening notes, her new life quickly starts to unravel. By the time she learns the horrifying truth, it’s too late. Caught in a waking nightmare, Sarah must find the strength to hold onto her crumbling sanity… or be trapped forever in an existential hell.
The pic premiered digitally in April and didn’t find much of an audience despite picking up some glowing reviews. In fact, to give you an idea of how low-profile this is, neither the movie, director or lead actor currently have entries on Wikipedia. It also launched on Netflix last week without fanfare, though instantly become a smash hit with viewers.
Earlier this week, it was the fifth most-watched movie on the site and it now sits in the number one spot, meaning that millions of people have been checking it out over the past few days. That’s borne out by a ton of very positive comments on Twitter, where users are saying 1BR is “wild asf,” “1BR is messed up I highly recommend,” “check out 1BR you will never look at renting a new apartment the same way again” and “such a fantastic film!”
Let’s hope this success means a big boost for the careers of all involved. In the meantime, if you haven’t seen the movie yet, be sure to give it a watch this weekend. You won’t regret it.
