M. Night Shyamalan has done it again. As you might imagine, his all-new horror film Knock at the Cabin features a surprising ending and a number of twists throughout its runtime. Now we’ve taken the time to explain it.
The new film has so far managed to gather a number of positive reviews from both audiences and critics. It’s done so well, in fact, that in its opening weekend it actually replaced Avatar: The Way of Water as the number one film at the box office.
If you haven’t seen the film, there are obvious spoilers that follow.
The story begins when a couple, Andrew and Eric, are spending a vacation with their daughter, Wen. The group are staying at a cabin when four strangers approach. The strangers, named Leonard, Ardiane, Sabrina, and Redmond, believe through visions that they must approach a family that will decide the fate of humanity.
In order to do so, the four strangers tell the family that they must choose a sacrifice among themselves. And, for every time they refuse to make a sacrifice, the strangers decide to kill one of their own. The series of deaths begins with Redmond and eventually leads to Leonard. And as each one of them dies – it appears that their deaths summon a different plague.
Of course, as the film goes on, Andrew and Eric struggle to determine whether or not the plagues are actually being caused by the four strangers. Eric eventually believes they’re telling the truth, however, so he urges Andrew to kill him. So what about the ending?
First, it’s worth noting that the film is actually based on a novel titled The Cabin at the End of the World. Readers of the novel will know the story features a much more ambiguous conclusion. The future is uncertain because Wen is accidentally killed. Then, while mourning the loss of their child, Andrew and Eric decide not to kill one another.
They instead choose to place Wen’s body in their vehicle before leaving the cabin. As they drive away, the consequences of their actions are unclear. It’s certainly a thought-provoking way to end the story. Of course, the film takes a different approach to the matter.
Viewers that have seen the film know that the story is way less ambiguous. Andrew indulges Eric’s request to be the sacrifice. With Eric now dead, Andrew and Wen leave the cabin. It appears that the plagues caused by the deaths of the four strangers have also started to disappear without reason. As such, Eric’s sacrifice successfully saved humanity. It isn’t exactly a twist for Knock at the Cabin so much as a twisted ending that offers a different perspective than the book.
M. Night Shyamalan directed the film from a screenplay he wrote with Steve Desmond & Michael Sherman. It’s based on the bestseller The Cabin at the End of the World from author Paul Tremblay. M. Night Shyamalan produced the film alongside Marc Bienstock and Ashwin Rajan. The executive producers are Steven Schneider, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos and Ashley Fox.
The cast includes Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Kristen Cui, Abby Quinn, and Rupert Grint.
Knock at the Cabin is currently playing in theaters. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional M. Night Shyamalan or horror film news as we have it.