I’m going to treat this review a little differently because I will be going into this movie with unique circumstances. Since my inception, I have never read a book that eventually became a movie until now. Because of that, I’m breaking this review into two parts: the first is more focused on the book and my expectations coming into watching the movie, and the following will be about the movie itself and my thoughts.
Part 1:
The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay (on which this movie is based) is fantastic. I loved how fast it picks up, how the story constantly changes perspectives to give more weight to each situation, and how it all wraps up. If you’ve seen the trailers or even just read the little synopsis on the back of the book, you can understand where the book goes. A group of four people (Leonard, Adriane, Sabrina, and Redmond) hold a family (Eric, Andrew, and their daughter Wen) hostage and tell them the world will end if they do not sacrifice one of themselves. The book takes many twists and emotional turns until the end when the family ultimately makes their decision. It was a satisfyingly inconclusive end that left me on the edge of my seat and had me wanting more.
This is what I am the most nervous about going into the movie. M. Night Shyamalan has a reputation for incorporating twists in the third acts of his movies and I am fully expecting part of the twist is going to make the ending more definitive. I’m not saying it’ll be bad but I am nervous it will lack the lasting tension and uneasiness of the book. I mean, I finished reading and almost immediately looked up reviews of it so I can hear how other people interpreted it. I think it is possible to see the movie explore one of the other consequences of Eric and Andrew’s decision, which would be very interesting if handled right.
I’m also really interested in how Shyamalan treats each character. The book changes perspectives with each chapter, giving the reader a view into each character’s mind as they think through what is happening. Like I said before, the book just picks up in the first few pages and uses each character’s thoughts to fill in the gaps of character traits. This is something I don’t know how a movie can pull off outside of using flashback scenes, but then it can feel like a break from the story if they’re not handled right. The book itself is very focused on the characters and their actions which is something I think Shyamalan can work with. It’s a very isolated story that uses flashbacks to add more layers to each character and that’s something I’d imagine Shyamalan can replicate.
Overall, I know it’ll be very hard for the movie to truly capture the tension of the book, and there is a certain piece of the book that I’m super interested in seeing how Shyamalan handles it, as it is incredibly heavy but important to the tone of the story. I’d say my expectations are around a 7 out of 10. I hope he can do the book justice while adding his own style to keep me guessing.
Part 2:
I am just getting back from the theater and I think my thoughts can be boiled down to simply “that was a perfectly good movie, I should not have read the book first.” First off, the casting was great. I’ve loved Jonathon Groff since I saw him in Mindhunters and he was very, very good as Eric, who is in haze almost all throughout the movie. Dave Bautista was perfectly cast as Leonard, a towering, intimidating individual who was very soft-spoken and carried a lot of emotional weight. I think I said it in my Glass Onion review but he is adding so much depth to his performances and I hope he gets more dramatic roles.
But I said I wish I hadn’t read the book, and I should explain that. I was right in saying that Shyamalan would make the ending cut and dry, and I realized in the theater that I did not like that. I will not say where the ending goes, but I feel like it spelled it out for the audience. There’s no need to hear anyone’s opinion on what could’ve happened because it’s clear what the outcome was. I also think the ending dragged on a bit, which contributed to why I felt like nothing was left up to the viewer’s interpretation.
The film strayed from the book in other areas leading up to the end, which I was a fan of, except for that one piece of the book I mentioned earlier. That scene was omitted in the movie and I really wish it hadn’t. Even with the path the movie decided to go down, that instance would’ve been so impactful to all the characters and could’ve added more emotion to the final decision.
Outside of some poor dialogue and poor visual effects, my only other big critique is how Shymalan located the flashbacks for the characters. As I said before, the book used flashbacks to add character depth, given how fast the plot picks up. Shyamalan does as well, but each time placement was shown, it often felt out of place with the rest of the story. For instance, there is a flashback of Andrew’s parents meeting Eric, (who they disapprove of for homophobic reasons) and it wasn’t paired with a scene in the present day where anything could relate to it.
But I want to complete this critical sandwich with a positive bun. I think Shyamalan nailed the theme of doubt in the movie. The group of four is trying to convince Eric, Andrew, and Wen that in order to save the world from the end of days, they have to willingly sacrifice one of themselves. Obviously, they don’t believe the group and Andrew is the voice of reason throughout the experience, pointing out how every disaster happening is either not new or a coincidence. By planting logical seeds of doubt early and often, the audience is just like Eric and Wen, not knowing who they really believe.
Final Thoughts
The Cabin at the End of the World is a fantastic book that I think everyone should read. Knock at the Cabin couldn’t really match the impact the book had on me, but it was still a pretty good movie. Like the book, it is quick (100 minutes) and gets going almost immediately which should captivate viewers as soon as they get comfortable in their seats. Not all the subject matter from the book came into the adaption, which was disappointing, albeit expected. Shyamalan’s style was fun to watch, the actors all gave solid performances, and the ending is still emotional and impactful. This is for sure worth the watch for anyone with any doubts.
