M. Night Shyamalan is back in business, with the filmmaker’s latest venture Knock at the Cabin having achieved the long-awaited feat of being Shyamalan’s first film since 2016’s Split to gain a positive critical reception from critics and audiences alike.
It’s a film of both familiarities and new ground for Shyamalan, who sticks firmly to his horror-tinged roots while making his first attempt at adapting a story from pre-existing source material, courtesy of Paul G. Tremblay’s 2018 novel The Cabin at the End of the World.
The tricky thing about horror, of course, is that it’s not always the most accessible genre for the average moviegoer; whether it has to do with its reputation for graphic violence, embellishment of despair, or its tendency to prey on the most sensitive nervous system in the room, Shyamalan’s bread and butter certainly isn’t home to the interests of wider audiences.
It’s a sentiment that could do with some change; just because a movie belongs to the horror genre, it doesn’t mean that someone is going to get mangled Art the Clown-style. In fact, much of 2022’s horror slate, which was one of the most impressive in recent memory, lent itself to a wide variety of more accessible elements, such as flirtations with sci-fi and fantasy (Nope), frequent pairings with comedy (Bodies Bodies Bodies), and even some combination of both (M3GAN).
All of this to say, accessible horror films are out there, and Knock at the Cabin falls graciously into such a distinction. It may not skimp on tension, but, even though the weapons wielded by Leonard and co. look rather intimidating, it doesn’t translate to much on-screen gore at all. Most of the damage the characters inflict on each other happens off-screen, and even the ones that don’t (such as one of the gunshots that occur in the film) never amount to anything more than a small dripping of blood.
So, as a former horror-averse moviegoer (and as someone who still continues to avoid the likes of the Terrifier franchise and jumpscare-fests a la Smile), I hereby recommend Knock at the Cabin if you’ve always been curious about horror but are nervous about subjecting yourself to gratuitous bloodshed; Shyamalan’s films may be spooky, but thankfully, the spooks are easy-cleanup.