KEEPER REVIEW
“Perkins’ most effective and original horror films – it’s absolutely terrifying!”
I wasn’t sure if I’d have a chance to review Osgood Perkins’ latest horror movie this week, since there was word Neon wanted to avoid showing it to critics in advance “to maintain the film’s secrets.” To many critics (and admittedly myself sometimes), that could mean the movie is bad, and the studio is hiding it. Then, earlier this week, Neon was nice enough to invite me to an earlier screening, and I can now say that any worries in regards to Keeper’s quality would be unfounded. I was already a little surprised the movie didn’t play Fantastic Fest or any of the other fall genre fests, since that has often been the way to get buzz out for a horror movie, but Neon was clearly concerned that people would blab, and maybe rightfully so.
I’ve said this quite a few times in preface to one of my reviews, but this time I really mean it: Keeper is a movie that you really should go into without knowing much of anything, which may be why the trailers for it have been intentionally vague. With that in mind, if you plan on seeing Keeper regardless of what I say about it, I will just say that I liked it and will leave it at that. If you’re reading this review to learn more about those secrets mentioned, then you’ve probably come to the wrong review.
By now, you’re probably well aware of this popular post-COVID horror subgenre involving a couple that go on a romantic and secluded getaway that leads to all sorts of terror. Together, Oh Hi!, Bone Lake, and Companion all fall into that category to varying degrees, and there have been so many since COVID I’m probably forgetting one or two. That’s the case with Tatiana Maslany’s Liz, who has been dating her doctor boyfriend, Malcolm (Rossif Sutherland), for a year, before they head out to his family’s proverbial “cabin in the woods.” It’s not long before Malcolm’s obnoxious bro cousin Darren (Birkett Turton) barges in with his Eastern European model girlfriend in tow, who he boasts about her inability to speak English. Pretty soon afterwards, Liz begins to freak out, having nightmarish visions and hallucinations, as well as actual nightmares, not knowing what is real and what is part of her imagination.
The big secrets hidden within Keeper are cleverly enigmatic, beginning with the opening montage of women, seemingly from different time periods, in various stages of experiencing something distressful. That’s literally how the movie opens, and also how the film was teased back when The Monkey came out. Because of that opening, you are likely to spend much of the film wondering (and stressing) about the horrors to come – does it involve vampires or werewolves? Ghosts? Aliens? And what’s up with that chocolate cake? It does look tasty but… um… Those are some of the many mysteries you’ll spend much of the film puzzling over, and that just makes some of the film’s stranger sequences even creepier and also more compelling, since you’re never quite sure what’s happening. Just like Liz.
One of the reasons Keeper works so well is that it’s just the perfect acting showcase for the talented Ms. Maslany to display her vast skills, as her Liz is going through and put through a lot. By comparison, Sutherland is just there, since his character doesn’t have to do very much, other than be the supportive boyfriend, but the viewer always realizes something isn’t quite right. Things start getting even crazier once Malcolm reveals those aforementioned secrets, and there’s really nothing to prepare you for the last 20 minutes of the movie. One non-spoiler reference I can make if you’re wondering if Keeper will be your thing is that there seems to be a firmly ingrained David Lynch influence at work. There’s another very specific horror movie I could cite which would indeed spoil things, so I won’t mention it.
It was only when I reached the end of the movie when I realized that, unlike Osgood Perkins’ previous two films, he didn’t write Keeper. Instead, he was working from a script by Nick Lepard, who also wrote the twisty Aussie shark movie, Dangerous Animals. Maybe knowing this informs us that Perkins may be a far better director than he is a writer, although, as is often said, your mileage and tastes may vary. Either way, Perkins definitely keeps you invested in every second of the film, even if you’re not always sure what is happening. He’s created a film that constantly keeps you on the edge of your seat, but it’s hard to tell without a second viewing if that’s just due to not knowing what’s going to happen next.
Keeper may be the closest a filmmaker has come to making a movie as jarring and unnerving as Ari Aster’s Hereditary (which I just watched again on Halloween). In other words, it’s Perkins’ most effective and original horror movie yet, and the results are absolutely terrifying!
Rating: 8/10
Keeper opens nationwide on Friday, November 14
Oooh, this sounds super fun.
intrigued by this, as someone who enjoyed The Monkey