Tag: Knock at the Cabin

REVIEW: Queer Representation is Front and Center of ‘Knock at the Cabin’

There’s an old-school simplicity to M. Night Shyamalan’s Knock at the Cabin, a film he co-wrote with Steve Desmond and Michael Sherman (and based on the novel of the same name by Paul Tremblay). Even at the opening credits, he uses the old logo of Universal Pictures and uses an old-style font and presentation of the opening credits. With further reading, he even used 90s-era lenses to give the film “an old-school thriller look.” And what you see in the trailer is exactly what this movie is about: a family is taken hostage by four strangers in a cabin in the woods, with the hopes that the family will choose one member to sacrifice to stop the apocalypse.

It’s as simple as it sounds, with a bit of dipping into the psychological thriller genre as it questions the veracity of the four strangers’ claim that the fate of the world rests upon the sacrifice of this one family. Most of the 110-minute running time is spent on that premise. While the film’s plot revolves around this conundrum – does the family believe them or not and can they escape from this situation unharmed or not? – it does go into flashbacks to create an emotional throughline for the family that serves to complicate things.

Because what contrasts that old-school simplicity of this simple narrative is the fact that the family is that of queer parents (two gay dads) and is multi-racial, as their daughter was adopted in Asia.

And it is in this character design setup where the film finds its profundity.

Photo: Knock at the Cabin trailer

It’s not often that we see the main characters of a commercial psychological thriller to be led by gay parents. There was even an impulse that I had to fight back to question the sincerity of the choice. “Was it a checklist for progressive identity politics?” This is what happens when there’s not enough positive representation for the queer community that anything of the sort done in such a mainstream release is met with suspicion. Why can’t gay parents be the protagonists of any movie – regardless of genre?

And that the issues surrounding gay people and gay parents are at the crux of ‘Knock at the Cabin.’ As the film shifts to flashbacks to round out the history of this couple – Andrew and Eric played by Ben Aldridge and Jonathan Groff – we see the cruelty of asking any member of such a persecuted minority like the queer community to sacrifice a member of their chosen family for the sake of the world.

Photo: Knock at the Cabin trailer

What makes it even more cruel is the fact that the apocalypse might not even hinge on their sacrifice and that these four strangers – led by the gentle giant Leonard, played by a transformed Dave Bautista – may just be psychotic or part of some strange and dangerous cult.

The film never goes into the easy scares and all the tension is predicated upon that premise: does the fate of the world hang in their sacrifice? Are these four strangers really telling the truth about their visions or are they crazy and out of their minds? And if it is the former, how does one even begin to make that decision?

Photo: Knock at the Cabin trailer

There’s a lot of earnestness in the performances with incredible performances by Bautista, Groff, Aldridge and Kristen Cui, who plays the young daughter Wen, and Nikki Amuka-Bird, who plays one of Leonard’s associates. Always, there are very human moments presented by the four strangers that push the boundaries of what you can believe and then you must bear witness to what they are able to do for the family to make that choice.

Within this whole narrative, the issues of the queer community are really put into an emotional grinder (pun intended). For all the persecution and hate that they have taken for years, if the fate of the world was left to us having to make another sacrifice, would we do it? Would Andrew and Eric and Wen?

Photo: Knock at the Cabin trailer

Shyamalan is in fine form here with his camera going in really close to his actor’s faces as if their humanity (and maybe even their sanity) is in full view. He focuses on the little details of each moment while at the same time moving the camera away from all the gruesome acts of violence. It’s all implied rather than the focus. It’s as if he doesn’t want us to get distracted by the choice, whether it is real or not.

There are no surprise twists here as one would expect from a Shyamalan film. The story reaches its resolution as best as it could but one thing is certain: it’s so wonderful to see gay parents at the center of this story and how their love is depicted as universal. The film never questions it and this movie is out there.

I hope more movies present queer characters as smoothly as this so that I’ll never have to be suspicious again.

My Rating:

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Knock at the Cabin is now showing in cinemas nationwide. Buy your tickets here.

February 1, 2023
New Movies in Philippine Cinemas this February 2023

After greeting the year 2023, we are now to celebrate the season of love this February! This month, cinemas are offering an exciting lineup of films you’ll love, from a new M. Night Shyamalan thriller to a star-studded flick about the early years of Hollywood!

On this list, we’ve rounded up the movies you can catch in cinemas this month of February. Check them out below:

Babylon

February 1

Starring Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Tobey Maguire, and Diego Calva, this film follows the rise and fall of ambitious dreamers during an era of decadence, depravity, and outrageous excess in Hollywood.

Knock at the Cabin

February 1

From M. Night Shyamalan, this thriller follows a young girl and her parents whose vacation at a remote cabin turns into a nightmare when four armed strangers appear, forcing them to make an unthinkable choice to stop the apocalypse.

The First Slam Dunk

February 1

Based on the hit sports manga and anime Slam Dunk, this film follows Hanamichi Sakuragi and the Shohoku team as they face off against the Sannoh High basketball team.

Spellbound

February 1

A Filipino adaptation of the South Korean film of the same name, Spellbound tells the romantic tale of a magician and a girl who can see dead people.

Titanic (Remastered)

February 8

In celebration of the film’s 25th anniversary, revisit the tragic tale of Jack and Rose as they meet, fall in love, and fall victim to the sinking of the Titanic.

Magic Mike’s Last Dance

February 8

After a business deal that went bust, a struggling Mike Lane is given an opportunity he can’t refuse, prompting him to return to the stage one last time with a hot new roster of dancers to train.

Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania

February 15 | Buy Tickets

After an attempt to communicate with the Quantum Realm, Scott Lang, his daughter Cassie, and Hope and her parents are pulled inside where they encounter the dangerous Kang.

Empire of Light

February 22

From Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes, Empire of Light is a compelling drama showcasing the human connection’s power during turbulent times.

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[Note: release dates for movies in Philippine cinemas this February 2023 and film lineup are subject to change without prior notice. For more upcoming movies, click here.]

January 27, 2023
Prophecy of an Apocalypse Forces Family to Give Up a Life in M. Night Shyamalan’s “Knock at the Cabin”

“Knock at the Cabin” centers on a gay couple, Eric (Groff) and Andrew (Aldridge) and their adopted daughter Wen (Cui), who are vacationing at a remote cabin in the woods, when their house is surrounded by four armed strangers: Leonard (Bautista), Sabrina (Bird), Adrianne (Quinn) and Redmond (Grint.) Taken hostage, the family is informed that these four strangers—who also do not know each other—have all been haunted and tormented by a shared prophecy: that the world will end unless the family in this cabin chooses one member of the family to die.

Fil-Am actor and former wrestling champion, Bautista, also known for his roles in successive blockbuster films “Guardians of the Galaxy”, “Army of the Dead” and “Suicide Squad” takes on the role of Leonard in “Knock at the Cabin.” As Leonard and the designated leader of the group of four mysterious strangers, Bautista thinks that the role is an opportunity of a lifetime. “This is what I’ve been waiting for because roles like this don’t get offered to me. Typically, everybody wants me for action stuff, and I understand why they want to put me in that box. But I’ve been fighting to get out of that box. I wanted deeper roles because I want to prove myself as an actor,” enthuses Bautista. One of the main messages behind Knock at the Cabin is sacrifice and not putting a definition on what love looks like. “Love takes all kinds of shapes and forms and comes from places you wouldn’t expect,” Bautista further says. “I hate to be cliché, but it can save the world.”

The role of Leonard is complex and layered, according to director Shyamalan. “Leonard is like a giant who’s physically intimidating and has to do these horrific things, but is actually incredibly gentle, like a teacher,” Shyamalan says. “And Dave is this character. He is this childlike giant. He’s very smart and is incredibly analytical about human nature—almost like a child. He can panic in a way, like a child, in the most beautiful way. And I wanted all of that on screen.”

Harry Potter’s Rupert Grint continues to solidify his filmography in his latest role in the movie as Redmond. “There’s something quite seductive about apocalypse movies,” Grint says. “Rarely has been it explored in such a confined, remote, intimate setting, which. And my role as Redmond is a character who’s also kind of in reform. He’s got a shady past, and suddenly, he’s hit with this huge burden and decision to make. He’s very aggressive, and still has a lot of anger he’s struggling with .” Grint was also fascinated with the story because it taps into a lot of the topical fears that surround us right now. “We’re just coming out of a global pandemic,” Grint says. “There’s an environmental crisis in the world that has never felt more fragile. So that kind of impending fear of the demise of the planet is something that’s in a lot of people’s minds at the moment.”

Shyamalan is eager for audiences to see the depth and nuance of Grint’s performance. “Rupert is the rare actor that reinvented himself as an adult,” Shyamalan says. “He took all those child-actor experiences—didn’t eat himself up—and turned it into wonderful techniques and opportunities for his adult acting journey. I’m really excited for everybody to see what he’s capable of and to continue finding stories for him.”

A Universal Pictures International presentation, “Knock at the Cabin” opens February 1 in cinemas nationwide.

January 20, 2023
M. Night Shyamalan’s “Knock At The Cabin” in Cinemas February 1

From visionary filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan, “Knock at the Cabin” takes adopted child Wen (played by newcomer Kristen Cui) with her gay parents Andrew (Jonathan Groff) and Eric (Ben Aldridge) at a remote cabin for a vacation where they soon encounter the most frightening moments of their lives. Not long before they’ve arrived at the cabin, a group of four armed strangers came knocking – Leonard (Dave Bautista), Sabrina (Nikki Amuka-Bird), Adrianne (Abby Quinn) and Redmond (Rupert Grint) who took them hostage. The family is informed that these four strangers—who also do not know each other—have all been haunted and tormented by a shared prophecy: that the world will end unless the family in this cabin chooses one member of the family to die.

Based on the national bestseller The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay, Knock at the Cabin began, initially, as a 2019 screenplay by Steve Desmond & Michael Sherman that landed a spot on the famed annual film-industry Blacklist, which highlights the best unproduced screenplays each year. Of all the extraordinary achievements of M. Night Shyamalan’s acclaimed career as a visionary filmmaker, perhaps the greatest is that his films remain enigmatic, unpredictable and unexpected. The only thing you’re certain of, stepping into a new M. Night Shyamalan film, is that you don’t know what’s about to hit you. “Knock at the Cabin” just may be the apotheosis of the Shyamalan cinematic experience. It’s a film that both shares a bloodline with his previous films but is also unlike any film he’s made before.

For Shyamalan, it was a question that contained multitudes of ideas that connected to the state of our world today. In his hands, “Knock at the Cabin” is a film that explores ideas behind faith and belief, certainty and doubt, and the power and limits of both. “It’s a modern-day biblical story,” Shyamalan says. “The idea of telling large-scale biblical stories, but in modern times and in modern settings, is resonating with me right now. The film is reflective of my current feeling that everything that’s going on in the world doesn’t look good and doesn’t feel good, but I do feel we are struggling together in the right direction. We’re certainly not getting it right all the time, but in general, the direction that we’re moving as humanity is in the right direction and we deserve a chance to continue. That’s my feeling. One love story is evidence enough that humanity should keep going. Knock at the Cabin is this incredible opportunity for us to experience this gigantic global biblical story through the experience of a family.”

January 6, 2023
WATCH: Dave Bautista, Rupert Grint, & More Terrify in New Shyamalan Film ‘Knock at the Cabin’

After the 2021 film Old, M. Night Shyamalan is back with a new thriller that turns yet another quiet vacation into a horrific nightmare.

Titled Knock at the Cabin, this film will pit a family against heretics who believe that the innocent vacationers will bring the apocalypse upon the Earth unless they make the impossible choice. Watch the trailer for Knock at the Cabin below:

The trailer begins with a young girl and her parents enjoying their vacation at a remote cabin in the woods. But soon enough, suspicious figures begin to stalk them, and the peaceful respite takes a totally dark turn when these people give their door a knock. These four people take the family hostage, claiming that they must make a horrible choice or the world will end.

Based on the bestselling book The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay, the film stars Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Kristen Cui, Abby Quinn, and Rupert Grint. The film is directed by Shyamalan who also co-wrote the screenplay with Steve Desmond and Michael Sherman.

The film is set for a US release on February 3, 2023. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get the latest news on film, TV, and more updates around the city!

September 23, 2022