The new film by M. Night Shyamalan
The director of ‘The Sixth Sense’, ‘The Village’ or ‘Glass’ returns to the big screen with another unique story with apocalyptic overtones. ‘Knock at the Cabin’ is the new film by M. Night Shyamalan in which a family is assaulted by a group of fanatics who allegedly seeks to prevent the end of the world. SOURCE: (EUROPA PRESS)
«We are in time to stop the Apocalypse»
«I think we still have time to stop the Apocalypse if we have the will and decision to do so,» says Shyamalan in an interview with Europa Press when asked about the apocalyptic overtones of his latest film, which, curiously, coincides with the latest trailer for the Doomsday Clock, the symbol with which a group of scientists assess how close the end of the world is.
«We must reflect»
A thermometer on the Apocalypse that, driven by factors such as nuclear risk from the Ukraine war, the climate crisis and the threat of a new pandemic, stands closer than ever to global cataclysm. «I’m sure every generation has felt they’ve been near the end, but none so much for us, I guess. And that’s something that should give us pause for thought, of course,» Shyamalan notes.
«I’m more optimistic lately»
In any case, the filmmaker confesses that his opinion about the future of humanity in the medium and long term depends on the day he has. «When I ask myself if the human experiment is going well, if I’m going through a bad moment, maybe I think no, that it would be better for us to save the rest of the species by disappearing ourselves. But lately I’m more optimistic, I believe more in our ability to change quickly,» says the director of ‘Signs’ or ‘Split’.
Very rapid changes
In this sense, Shyamalan stresses that «those social or technological changes that used to take 25 years, a whole generation, can now take place in just five years» and trusts that «this acceleration of change will work to our benefit» to delay, step by step, the end of the world clock.
«Cinema is never going to go away»
What Shyamalan has no doubt about is the future of movie theaters. And contrary to the opinion of many of his colleagues, he believes that the big screen is in «magnificent health». «Those who predict the apocalypse of cinema are wrong. Cinema will never disappear because it is the art of being together watching a story, sharing a story. That’s been around since the time of the cavemen and it’s not going to change. We want to get together to listen to stories,» he says.
«Cinema is the highest form of art»
And although factors such as «new technologies» or the still recent pandemic «can force us to separate», for Shyamalan the tendency to share «experiences together, whether concerts, sports or movies» is something «unparalleled». «To me film is the highest form of art because it’s all art forms together and enjoyed in community. And it’s not the same to do that at home. You can never compete against something like that,» argues the filmmaker, who maintains that the «impact» experienced by audiences in a movie theater is not comparable to that of platform releases.
«Not even a pandemic has been able to change cinema»
«Can you remember ten movies released on streaming from last year after the thousand that must have been released? They don’t impact us in the same way. Possibly we do remember 10 movies that have been released in theaters. The impact that a movie theater has on the audience is so profound that not even a global pandemic has been able to change it,» insists Shyamalan who backs up his enthusiasm with the «incredible results» achieved by «blockbusters» after covid such as the Marvel movies, ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ or the most recent ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’.
«Movie theaters are healthier than ever»
«There are still films that blow up the box office. The audience is still there and we must continue to make films to be seen exclusively in theaters. Theaters are healthier than ever,» he says.
‘Knock at the Cabin’
Based on the novel by Paul Tremblay, ‘Knock at the Cabin’ tells the story of a girl and her two parents enjoying their idyllic vacation in a remote cabin in the middle of the woods. Everything is going well until they become hostages of four armed strangers who will force them to make an impossible decision if they want to avoid the apocalypse.
Protagonists
The film stars Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, Rupert Grint, Ben Aldridge, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Abby Quinn and young Kristen Cui making her big screen debut.
