Knock at the Cabin – Movie Review
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Writer: M. Night Shyamalan, Steve Desmond, Michael Sherman (Screenplay)
Writer: Paul Tremblay (Book)
Cast
- Dave Bautista (Dune)
- Jonathan Groff (Frozen)
- Ben Aldridge (The Titan)
- Nikki Amuka-Bird (Old)
- Rupert Grint (Harry Potter Franchise)
Plot: While vacationing, a girl and her parents are taken hostage by armed strangers who demand that the family make a choice to avert the apocalypse.
Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Knock at the Cabin starts when a vacationing family, Eric (Groff), Andrew (Aldridge) and their daughter Wen (Cui) get a surprise visit. Leonard (Bautista), Sabrina (Amuka-Bird), Redmond (Grint) and Ardiane (Quinn) arrive to make a startling revelation.
The group claim that a member of the family must sacrifice themselves to stop the end of the world. This leaves the family questioning whether this is real or not, as the group try to explain why this must be done.
Verdict on Knock at the Cabin
Characters
Eric and Andrew are a gay couple taking their adopted daughter on a vacation. They have faced discrimination in the past and from within their own family. This vacation is meant to let them unwind, as Andrew has a built-up rage in him. The pair face the decision presented to them and try to use rational thinking to solve it. Throughout the story, we get to look at moments that have impacted the pair too.
Wen is the couple’s young daughter, she is introduced to capturing and studying grasshoppers. She makes friends with Leonard before learning what he and the group want. Wen is scared, despite using her innocent nature to show her fear of the situation.
The group is led by Leonard, a softly-spoken teacher. He wants to use a calm approach to the situation never using his size to take control. Leonard is open about his group’s visions and believes his approach will get the best results. Sabrina, Redmon and Ardiane have their own ways to convince. They manage to show restraint in the situation they are going through.
Performances
Dave Bautista is the leader of the group, his size makes him feel imposing but he is so softly spoken throughout the movie. He captures our attention and creates a true unease about what his character might do next.
Jonathan Groff and Ben Aldridge are wonderful as the couple with the decision. They often have to show more of their performance through expression and tone over any actions. Kristen Cui is excellent too giving us an innocent figure in the complicated situation.
Nikki Amuka-Bird, Rupert Grint and Abby Quinn complete the main cast and all bring determination and pain to their characters. As they know and believe everything they are saying.
Story
The story follows a vacationing family that gets approached by a group that makes a disturbing request from them. They ask the family to sacrifice a member to save the world from the apocalypse. What follows is the group and the family needing to figure out what is real and what is made up.
This is an excellent story, it manages to bring a mystery from the request and mixes it with the horror of a potential outcome. There is plenty to the discussion going on as the group presents what they believe will happen. This goes hand in hand with exploring both sides of the discussion as the tension involved rises.
The movie will offer plenty of discussion from the audience in the aftermath. Elsewhere, there is plenty of beliefs put into play and nothing holds us back from what we are made to believe. Meanwile, the location of the vacationing cabin is crucial to the movie. It creates isolation from being able to get help, so the request can take place.
Final Thoughts –Knock at the Cabin is an excellent tension-riddled mystery that will leave you stunned.
