The results are in from both sides of the critical fence, and M. Night Shyamalan‘s latest venture Knock at the Cabin has established itself as a much-needed thumbs-up, currently boasting approval ratings numbering 69 and 75 on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and audiences, respectively. This marks the first time since 2016, the year he released Split, that one of Shyamalan’s films received palpable praise from critics, with Glass and Old having both fallen on their faces in the years between.
It’s Shyamalan’s first film to be adapted from pre-existing material, being based on Paul G. Tremblay’s 2018 novel The Cabin at the End of the World. It’s certainly a more palpable creative route than one’s pure imagination, even one as fascinating as Shyamalan’s, and whether that nuance did most of the heavy lifting for the filmmaker’s latest success is something we may never know.
Nevertheless, the world could always do with a few more high spirits, and if they’re achieved by viewing Knock at the Cabin, then so be it (although, despite the deviation from the woefully-depressing ending of the novel, don’t expect anything feel-good).
Starring Dave Bautista in one of the best performances of his career, Knock at the Cabin follows the plight of a family of three, fathers Eric and Andrew and their adopted daughter Wen, whose vacation is rather violently interrupted by a group of four strangers led by Leonard (Bautista). After breaking into the family’s cabin, Leonard and his associates regretfully inform the three of them that if they don’t select a member of their family as a sacrifice, the world will come to a hellish end.
Knock at the Cabin is now playing in theaters.