KNOCK AT THE CABIN
Starring: Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Abby Quinn, Rupert Grint, and Kristen Cui
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
DARRYL
Knock at the Cabin shows that director M. Night Shyamalan still has gas left in the tank because this wonderfully directed and excellently paced movie fires on all cylinders. It’s an apocalyptic thriller that keeps the audience questioning who to believe, which creates an experience that will leave moviegoers thinking after the credits roll. Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, and Ben Aldridge are a fine leading trio, while the supporting cast conveys a desperation that makes the tension palpable. Overall, it highlights Shyamalan’s best traits, and it will go a long way to reminding viewers why they fell in love with his movies in the first place.
NICK
Knock at the Cabin opts for foreboding dread over the typical twists and turns you'd expect from an M. Night Shyamalan film, which makes it all the better. The film still features many of the director’s hallmarks, but he uses them in more subtle ways. This both builds suspense throughout and allows the performance of Dave Bautista, in particular, to really shine through. This is easily Bautista’s most emotionally driven showing yet, as he continues to show his range as an actor. The dialogue can be clunky, and I’m not sure I loved the ending's direction, but Shyamalan has continued his current streak of quality films.
AMARÚ
Director M. Night Shyamalan immediately sets an eerie tone in Knock at the Cabin. The film’s candidness is informed early on by introducing the movie with increasingly skewed close-ups during a conversation between standouts Dave Bautista (Leonard) and Kristen Cui (Wen). We’re diving headfirst into an unbelievable tale with full conviction. Interspersing the backstory of Wen’s family with the main plot allows us to trust both the doomsayers’ belief in their hellish task and the incredulousness of Wen’s family towards them. The honest cast, intense pacing, and bleak story create one of the more solid thrillers in M. Night’s filmography.
ADRIANO
However low the bar may be, Knock at the Cabin is not M. Night Shyamalan’s worst movie. He does a good job of building tension via the story’s thin concept, and he offers up a good moral question to boot. Also, it’s well acted across the board (namely Dave Bautista and Ben Aldridge). However, a lot of Shyamalan’s signature faults are here, such as awkward dialogue and bizarre cinematography choices, and all the tension is leading up to an inevitable ending that catches nobody by surprise. I was entertained for the most part, but still a whiff.
JACOB
Knock at the Cabin may be a complicated movie for M. Night Shyamalan fans to digest. Despite the director’s reputation, this might be his most straightforward movie ever, as well as one of his most bleak. Dave Bautista continues his streak of bringing unexpected humanity to otherwise dark characters, and Ben Aldridge gets a real chance to shine; however, the movie is pretty choppy in its editing, and the constant cutting to flashbacks releases a lot of tension in key moments where it’s needed. Overall, it’s not near M. Night’s top skills, but it’s far from his bottom.
PAIGE
Knock at the Cabin is a nail-biting home invasion thriller that keeps the tension boiling from start to finish. While it may not be director M. Night Shyamalan’s boldest film, it’s certainly his most grounded. It tackles themes of faith and sacrifice while making you wonder if you could make the decision at hand. Plus, its tight pacing allows the cast to deliver standout performances, especially from Dave Bautista. All that said, it’s definitely the type of film that is more tell than show. Overall, it just felt too straight forward to be an M. Night flick.
