Mad At The Movie

How strong is your faith? How much do you believe in God? If given a task as impossible as Abraham’s, would you go do it without question? Would you lay down your life like Jesus or would you sincerely beg for the cup to be passed from you? Pleading with God to forgo His wants but instead listen to yours.

Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love– Issac– and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

Genesis 22:2. Abraham Tested

Knock at the Cabin is an apocalyptic movie that begins with a gay couple and their daughter at a cabin vacationing in the woods. It starts out as a cutesy family movie but quickly goes left when they are sieged by four unknown assailants that gives them an ultimatum. Make the ultimate sacrifice or be selfish and let the world end.

Again, these movies keep tricking me by mentioning the word horror, or am I in the wrong for expecting too much? I want to feel fear- dread, the hairs standing up on my skin. This was far from that, if anything it was just really frustrating and infuriating for me.

The movie opens with lovely little Wen outside playing with insects, not being monitored by any parent might I add. She is surrounded by trees and flowers, no other house for miles. Then approaches a stranger, a big burly, tattoo covered man who seeks to befriend her. While witnessing this scene I was holding my breath and praying it was not going to go into assault territory. The utter disgust and disappointment I felt thinking that Dave Bautista would take such a role, almost had me storm out the theatre. Luckily, I decided to wait and see how the movie plays out.

He really just befriends Wen, then he gets really creepy and mentions his friends, which freaks Wen out and she runs back to her house to tell her daddies. They didn’t really believe Wen at first, then they had to; as four strangers with weapons were standing on their doorway. The strangers try asking to be let in politely but when the family doesn’t bite, they find their own way in– breaking and entering. As they storm the house, a battle ensues between the homeowners and the assailants. One of the dads, Daddy Eric, is injured and has a concussion. I knew from this moment that this concussion was the beginning of the end. How easy it is to get inside the mind of someone that’s not well. With the family bound and (un)willing to listen, the attackers begin their spiel. They tell the family that they have been getting visions from God that has lead to this moment, visions of the end times that only the family can stop; if they make the ultimate sacrifice.

Ultimatum: Make a willing sacrifice of one of the family members and save the world from death and destruction or, preserve their lives and live forever, undying, in a ruined world.

The assailants represent the four horsemen of the apocalypse: conquest, war, famine, and death. I wouldn’t exactly be keen on reasoning with strangers who stormed my house with weapons but at least they try to be nice and reassure the family that they won’t hurt them. The first of the Horsemen to die is Redmond, the family was asked who they chose as a sacrifice and since no one was chosen, “humanity was judged”, Redmond killed and the first plague released. Now, before being sent off, Redmond is scared shitless with the promise of death looming over his head, begging, shamelessly, to be saved. Daddy Andrew has recognised him as the man that beat the shit out of him (hate crime) years before. Imagine now, someone that almost killed you, in front of you begging to live, for his life, you must give up your own. I would think certainly this is a gift from God, having me witness the death of someone who wronged me. I don’t even think Andrew was religious, all the more for Redmond to die if he has no fear of Hell nor hopes for Heaven.

The next to die is this babe, I think she was a cook, unimportant, but she has a son, who she wants to raise, or see live and grow up, how touching…I guess, I didn’t believe a word of it though. I thought she just made up a son in order to live and get them to make the sacrifice. Goodness, I am quite the cold hearted cynic. Again, the family didn’t sacrifice a soul, humanity was judged, the second horseman was killed and the plague released. All of these plagues could be reasoned out, that they were all already happening. Two things stood out to me here, one: isn’t it crazy that world ending plagues are being unleashed and it can be seen as a regular Tuesday. Two: we definitely can’t use natural disasters as a marking for how quickly the end times will be upon us.

On one hand, the desperate pleas, the begging and cries for mercy underscores just how important this decision is and also their resolve to die shows that they really believe the words they’re saying. On the other hand, that belief and faith in knowing it’s true doesn’t stop the fear–it doesn’t make them any less afraid of dying. Yet, they still implore one of the family members to willingly and happily give up their life, with no proof other than to trust their words, believe that these strangers really did get divine visions from God. I suppose when you weigh the life of millions vs one, its easy to see where the scale would tip.

The rest of the movie goes on and the daddies try to escape and protect their little Wen, but it doesn’t go well as the third horseman is killed and another plague released. The remaining horseman, Bautista, warns them of what will happen if they do not make the ultimate sacrifice, as he kills himself and releases the final plague on the world. In a shocking turn of events it starts storming and, would you guess it, the concussed Daddy Eric said he saw something in the light and he truly believes this is a message from God. Eric, you were seeing stars, you hit your head so hard you could have died. In the end, he sacrificed himself and seemingly saved the world.

WOW.

The best thing about Knock at the Cabin is that we got to see Bautista in a completely different light. He normally plays roles that as just meathead characters, comic relief, this was different, a 180. The character Leonard is way more profound than anything else he has ever done. He was smart, gentle, and stern, someone who would go out of their way to make the ultimate sacrifice to save the world above themselves. He knew asking one of them to die for the greater good was a big ask but he needed them to understand the importance of the sacrifice, of it needing to be a choice. He even deescalates a few situations and try to minimise injury to the family members. You can tell Dave really put his all into this character, truly magnificent.

Honestly, the whole movie feels like that girl on TikTok that says “Let’s test your morality” and then gives you some bizarre situation to choose one evil over the other. I would not have sacrificed myself or anyone else. I am firm in believing that if my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ wanted me to sacrifice myself, God would simply allow the Holy Spirit to reveal it to me directly. Michael or Gabriel could have come down from Heaven and told me and I would have done it instantly. In this moment, I realised I would have died in the Great Flood. There’s nothing Noah could have told me to make me board that ark. I would have drowned because of my unbelief.

In the end, it wasn’t a bad movie, maybe I hated it so much because it showed me my own shortcomings; the limit of my faith and christianity.

Thanks for reading! This time I was definitely mad at the movie. See you next time to find out why if or why I’m mad at the movie.