Knock at the Cabin

Manuel São Bento 2/4/2023 8:51:10 AM 8.4

FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/knock-at-the-cabin-review "Knock at the Cabin marks the triumphant comeback of M. Night Shyamalan, who possibly delivers his best film since Signs! With the help of a superb cast led by the phenomenal Dave Bautista - career-best performance - the filmmaker explores the emotional complexity found in the profound moral dilemmas placed upon human beings when faced with life-and-death decisions. Total focus on a single location with persistent cinematography (Jarin Blaschke) and immersive sound production, generating an atmosphere charged with excruciating tension. Extraordinarily gripping from start to finish. The next cult classic is born." Rating: A-

tensharpe 2/9/2023 8:40:39 AM 8.4

“Knock at the Cabin” is a suspenseful, thriller with horror elements that wastes no time in its execution. After less than five minutes, the idyllic vacation choice of Eric and Andrew, dads to Wen, is turned into a nightmare home invasion. Leonard ( Dave Bautista ) tries to engage with Wen showing gentleness and countering the stereotype his muscular size conveys. Happily catching grasshoppers together, Leonard and Wen discuss family and future ambition. However once Leonard is joined by his three other companions his insistence and subsequent forceful entry to the cabin makes his character seem far more sinister.  Denial and paranoia set the tone as the four invading characters disclose their backgrounds and cult like vision that has set them on a mission to save the World from the Apocalypse. During back and forth conversations and threat of death, love and compassion strongly prevails even after some graphic killing. When faced with the reality of the home invaders reasoning for their actions, Eric and Andrew’s rising panic with each separate revelation fuels suffocating tension that continues to grow until the final moments. With very clever use of the four headless horsemen of the Apocalypse, and the persuasive nature of Leonard, eventually Eric and Andrew believe what they are being told. Throughout “Knock at the Cabin” M. Night Shyamalan’s direction keeps the audience constantly questioning. Are the events unfolding on screen actually real or just cult like paranoia twisting events to suit their agenda. With excellent performances and great use of lighting and cinematography to convey fear and rising tension, “Knock at the Cabin” is an engaging end of the World thriller.

Nathan 2/17/2023 1:56:15 PM 8.4

Knock at the Cabin is an interesting premise that has a lot going for it in terms of atmosphere and mystique but fails to land a satisfactory ending. I was pleasantly surprised with the story structure. The movie wastes no time throwing the audience into the conflict within the opening frames of the film. This allowed for an increased focus on the main story while maintaining a decent pace. The first act of the film is great, as the audience is new to the story and the mystery is still fresh. But slowly, the plot starts to repeat the same beats resulting in a less engaging second act. As the film draws to its conclusion it’s ending is incredibly predictable which slightly worked for me but may be divisive to a general audience. I did enjoy the small flashbacks of the couple's life. It added much needed context without taking too much time away from the main story arch. The acting in the film is overall good, but there are some major characters that stand out from the rest of the cast. Dave Bautista was excellent, he had a very serious, menacing presence, but had a kind and gentle nature to him that begged the audience to trust him. This was by far one of his more complex roles in his career and I think he did a great job. Abby Quinn had probably my favorite performance of the film. Her dramatic scenes were mesmerizing and really drew me in. She had such subtle facial gestures that expressed a deep sense of fear and sadness with eyes that could tell a story by themselves. It was superb. Jonathan Groff was good, although he really seems to be playing a similar style of character to all of his previous roles. I was excited to see Rupert Grint, but we do not really get to see enough of him as he is only in the film's first act and when he is present barely talks. Cinematography was great. There were some really interesting camera angles and shots that were classic from Shyamalan. I thought he did a really good job of portraying the brutality of what was occurring without actually showing it. Having it pan away from the action or it being just out frame gave the audience what they needed to know without directly seeing it. It slightly added to the suspense of it all. Although, as a true horror fan, I would have loved to see some gore! There are some very corny sequences with terrible CGI that took me out of this movie. But with a budget of only $20m, I am not sure what more I could have asked for. Overall, there is a lot to like about Knock at the Cabin, but it is missing multiple key elements that hold it back from being a Shyamalan instant classic. Despite that, I think it was an enjoyable watch that I recommend you check out in theaters. Score: 73% | Verdict: Good