While on holiday at a remote cabin, a young girl and her parents are taken hostage by four armed strangers who demand they make an unthinkable choice.
Based on the popular novel ‘The cabin at the end of the world’ by Paul Tremblay, this is the latest film from director M.Night Shyamalan, the filmmaker behind Signs and the Sixth Sense.
Dave Bautista leads the cast as Leonard, the mountainous leader of a group of infiltrators wielding medieval weapons.
Nikki Amuka-Bird, Rupert Grint and Abby Quinn are his disciples whilst Jonathan Groff and Ben Aldridge star as the same sex parents to Kristen Cui’s Wen, who’s woodland break is unceremoniously interrupted.
After breaking into the holiday home, Leonard and his group insist the family must sacrifice one of their party in order to prevent the end of the world. Understandably appalled by this prospect, and suspecting a homophobic motive behind the break-in, the family refuse, but are warned that every moment without a decision brings everyone on the planet closer to the apocalypse. The premise is a tantalising one. Are the group deluded religious fanatics? or does what they say have merit?The way things pan out lacks the shock factor present in many Shyamalan films, and if you’ve seen the trailer, you can probably guess which way this is heading, however that doesn’t prevent the film being an enjoyable watch. Since his breakthrough in the early 2000’s Shyamalan has always been a very hit and miss filmmaker, with his recent output in particularly being of wildly varying quality. Here his direction is on point and the solid performances from his cast shine through.
Bautista continues to pick interesting projects and is very well cast here, his hulking form belying a sad almost apologetic demeanour. Unlike his former pro wrestling peers Dwayne Johnson and John Cena he’s managed to break out of the stereotypical action / comedy roles, and is proving to be an actor with real range. The original script which spent time on the Hollywood black list for highly rated unmade projects, was retooled by Shyamalan who scaled it back to basics, focussing more on the family’s dilemma and the impossible choice presented to them.
With an atmosphere of stifling tension, Knock at the Cabin deals in paranoia rather than scares, and forgoes any trademark Shyamalan twist.
A well crafted, if unspectacular mystery horror.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Paul Steward
7/02/23
@grittster