Knock Knock
DIRECTOR: ELi Roth
CAST: Keanu Reeves, Lorenza Izzo, Ana de Armas, Aaron Burns, Ignacia Allamand and Colleen Camp
CLASSIFICATION: 16 L N S SV V
RUNNING TIME: 99 minutes
RATING: 2 stars (out of 5)
John DeFore
Wish-fulfilment turns to home invasion in Knock Knock, the titillation-fuelled thriller from Eli Roth. As a family man entrapped by two sadistic sexpots, Reeves is a lesson in victimhood, first struggling to resist their wiles, then trying to keep them from ruining his life. The actor’s presence will help the film reach beyond the horror maven’s usual crowd, but many will be left unsatisfied by a film that flirts with explanations for its action without ever delivering.
An architect living in a posh home outside LA, Reeves’s Evan has settled in for a working weekend while his wife and kids are away. Just a night with some drinks, some loud music… and two strangers at the door: dripping-wet young ladies stranded on the way to a party.
Reluctantly inviting them in, Evan gives Genesis (Izzo) and Bel (De Armas) robes and puts their clothes in the dryer. Perhaps you see where this is headed. The women flirt openly with him, offering unsolicited insight into the sexual mores and habits of millennials, bending over strategically, cooing over their host’s biceps and his record collection.
What fun Knock Knock has to offer is in these scenes, watching Reeves mentally grapple with the Penthouse Forum scenario unfolding around him. Leaping out of seats when they sidle up too close to him, refusing to take conversational bait, volunteering praise about the work of his wife, Evan is heroic but doomed to failure. Even his wife might not blame him for succumbing, though she might be hurt by the enthusiasm he shows during the eventual menage a trois.
The next morning, the sirens have turned to gremlins, tearing up the place and taking any opportunity to ruin Evan’s reputation. Izzo and De Armas’ performances grow increasingly difficult to believe as the characters become violent, tying Evan up and forcing him to play games whose rules only they know. We keep waiting for the justification for their sadism, but the script never makes sense of it.
What would Knock Knock look like with a handsome nobody in Reeves’s role and two smart, established actresses opposite him? Such a film would likely have trouble with the audience this one is courting. But it would be a more interesting. – The Hollywood Reporter
If you liked No Good Deed or The Perfect Guy, you will like this.