Shuvrajit Das Biswas
‘Brightburn’ is a 2019 American superhero horror movie. Directed by David Yarovesky and produced by James Gunn, the film is a fascinating look at the culture of superheroes that has permeated the entertainment industry, especially mainstream Hollywood. When we look at superheroes, we see their immense power and how they use it for good. But we have rarely stopped to ask ourselves what would happen if these superpowered individuals did not grow up under the right conditions, and chose to use their powers for evil. It would be a horrific world to live in, especially since we would be powerless to do anything against them. ‘Brightburn’ takes the story of Superman and turns it into something evil. Naturally, the film has been praised for its horror elements since a world with a rogue Superman-like individual would be a terrifying place. ‘Brightburn’ takes it a step further by introducing other evil superpowered individuals at the end of the movie, who appear to be modeled after Flash, Wonder Woman and Aquaman.
Since there aren’t many superhero horror movies out there, you must be wondering where you can watch ‘Brightburn’. However, before we tell you that, let us briefly tell you about the story of the movie.
What is Brightburn About?
If you are familiar with Superman’s story, you will find a lot of similarities in ‘Brightburn’. The story starts in 2006, and we are introduced to Tori and Kyle Breyer, who live in Brightburn in Kansas. One night when they are trying to have a child, a spaceship crashes outside near their farm; they discover a baby inside. The farmer and his wife take the child in, naming him Brandon. The couple hides the spaceship in the cellar but it begins to emit an alien message that causes Brandon to sleepwalk towards it. In the process, he discovers that he has super strength and invulnerability. As Brandon begins to reach puberty, he starts acting out, becoming disobedient. He causes a scene at a diner on his birthday, forcing his parents to begin to acknowledge that all might not be okay with their adopted son.
When Kyle, Brandon’s stepfather, discovers magazines of women in lingerie and swimsuit models in his room, he has an awkward talk about sexuality and masturbation. However, the more disturbing discovery is a collection of images of human organs in Brandon’s room. The talk with his stepfather leads Brandon to believe that he should act on his sexual urges and approaches a girl from his class that he likes. However, breaking into her room at night using his powers only serves to scare her. Brandon begins to exhibit more disturbing behavior as he slaughters the chicken in their farmhouse. Tori, his stepmother, finds Brandon once again levitating over the area where the spaceship is hidden. He injures himself for the first time on the ship’s metal.
Events force Tori to reveal Brandon’s true parentage to him, causing him to leave. However, he understands the ship’s message, which says “Take the world”. Brandon’s reign of terror begins. He kills the mother of the girl he liked. There is a terrifying scene as Brandon’s powers become evident and his victims are helpless to do anything. He keeps leaving a symbol behind, which becomes an ominous calling card.
When Brandon kills Noah, who Kyle was close to, Kyle decides that Brandon must be stopped. He acts alone in attempting to take Brandon to the woods to kill him. However, the bullet does nothing and Brandon kills Kyle with heat vision. He then proceeds to attack Tori and the law enforcement agents she manages to call. Tori almost gets the best of Brandon using a combination of her motherly affection and a piece of metal she gets from the spaceship. However, Brandon mercilessly kills her as well. He then forces an airplane to crash into the farm, to cover up his murders. At the end of the film, news reports show that Brandon’s reign of terror is becoming global and he is nowhere close to stopping.
Is Brightburn on Netflix?
Netflix has a fantastic library which contains a wide array of movies and television shows intended to cater to the varying tastes of viewers. On top of that, the platform has a fantastic collection of superhero content. Thus, it would be logical to assume that ‘Brightburn’ might be on the platform. Unfortunately though, it is not available yet; but you can check out various other superhero shows that push the genre forward, like ‘The Umbrella Academy‘ or Marvel’s Netflix shows.
Is Brightburn on Hulu?
Hulu has a good library of films and television shows. Moreover, the platform keeps making smart additions to stay ahead of the competition. Though ‘Brightburn’ is not on Hulu, you can check out ‘Iron Man 2’ to see how heroes with the best intentions might also sometimes be misguided in their actions.
Is Brightburn on Amazon Prime?
Amazon Prime has a library that can perhaps only be bested by Netflix. ‘Brightburn’ is not on Amazon Prime, but they have a wonderful show called ‘The Boys‘ which deals with the irresponsibility of superheroes in a fantastic manner. Moreover, you can purchase or rent and watch ‘Brightburn’ on the platform. It costs $5.99 to rent it and $14.99 to buy it. Unless you are bent on keeping the movie in your library, we recommend renting it. Check it out here.
Where Can I Stream Brightburn Online?
No subscriptions to the major streaming platforms? No problems. You can still watch ‘Brightburn’. Head over to YouTube, Vudu or FandangoNow. YouTube lets you rent the movie at $5.99 and purchase it at $14.99. Vudu and FandangoNow have options to rent or purchase the SD, HD, or Ultra HD versions. All the options cost $14.99 to purchase. You can rent the SD version at $4.99, the HD version at $5.99 and the Ultra HD version at $7.99. We recommend renting the HD version.
When Will Brightburn Release On DVD And BluRay?
If you are looking for the DVD and BluRay copies of ‘Brightburn’, you are in luck. They have been available as of August 2019. You can check them out here.
Where Can I Watch Brightburn Online For Free?
Unfortunately for freeloaders, ‘Brightburn’ is not available for free viewing using any legal means. You have to wait till one of the platforms with a free trial period adds the movie. However, we would urge all our readers to pay for any art that they consume.
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