Knock at the Cabin review

Theatrical review

There aren’t too many writer/director types who have a perfect track record, especially as their catalog grows. But none have a more uneven history than M. Night Shyamalan. From the highs of “The Sixth Sense” and “Unbreakable” to the extreme lows of “The Last Airbender” and “The Happening,” Shyamalan manages to keep audiences coming back over and over to see what kind of an experience they’ll have this time. He certainly gets me with it, and did again with his most recent film, “Knock at the Cabin.” 

Eric (Jonathan Groff) and Andrew (Ben Aldridge) are taking their daughter Wen (Kristen Cui) on vacation to a remote cabin in the woods of Pennsylvania. As Wen is out collecting grasshoppers, she sees a lumbering figure who introduces himself as Leonard (Dave Bautista). As they talk, he is joined by three more people: Sabrina (Nikki Amuka-Bird), Redmond (Rupert Grint), and Adriane (Abby Quinn). Carrying menacing looking weapons, they force their way into the cabin and explain that they have been guided there by visions to help prevent the apocalypse. As time goes by, the family must make a choice to willingly sacrifice one in their group to die to save all of humanity.

I walked away from this movie not sure how I felt about it, but as I’ve sat on it a bit, here are some of my thoughts.

The acting in this is top notch. The core cast is absolutely phenomenal at conveying the fear that all of them are feeling while also showing how determined each one is. I have been skeptical of Bautista’s acting chops, but he was incredible in this. Truly, there is not a weak performance in the whole ensemble. I was rooting for all of them at various times and that’s on the strength of their execution.

The story itself stretches credulity. While I can suspend disbelief, this one asks us to stretch it a lot. I found the news footage meant to back up the story of the intruders to be poorly done, and some of the special effects were not great, to put it generously. I think the decision to keep us guessing about whether or not it was real just weakened the overall plot.

I love seeing diverse casting in films, and having a gay couple as the leads here was great. They are chosen to sacrifice a member of their family because of their great love for one another. But the means by which Shyamalan showed that they loved each other was through one trauma after another. Parents who rejected them. Hiding their identity to adopt their daughter. A hate crime. In four flashbacks, there is only one that is truly joyful.

I don’t think we need to spare minority characters from heartache in movies, but if “Knock at the Cabin” wants to celebrate queer love, as it seems to want to do, it could have done that by showing that love in the context of happy moments rather than painful ones.

This review originally appeared in The Dominion Post on February 5, 2023.