Keeper Review: Osgood Perkins’ Genre-Defying, Though Somewhat Underwhelming Cabin-in-the-Woods Horror Boasts Impeccable Visuals

Playing safe isn’t what defines Osgood Perkins’ work, and the same goes for Keeper. Here is a horror movie equivalent to a shapeshifter because what you see here is more than just a cabin-in-the-woods horror setup. Right from the onset, Perkins keeps things chillingly ambiguous, opening with a montage that makes you wonder what it’s all about. The scene provides no answers, just unnerving imagery, before we are introduced to a couple: Liz (Tatiana Maslany) and Malcolm (Rossif Sutherland), whose respective professions are artist and doctor. We learn they have been dating for quite a while.

So, the story follows them heading to a cabin deep in the woods for a getaway. The place is secluded, and the cabin itself boasts a contemporary design with lots of windows overlooking the woods, and the kind of decor straight out of a furniture showroom. For a while there, it looks like a sweet, romantic moment for the two of them with no outside distractions. Then, one night, just after the two have dinner, Malcolm’s obnoxious cousin, Darren (Birkett Turton), drops by all of a sudden, bringing along his statuesque date, Minka (Eden Weiss), where the latter barely speaks a word.

Perkins embraces the slow-paced approach that has been part of his signature directorial style, while utilising the power of suggestion and a cryptic storytelling method, which may frustrate some viewers. Again, Keeper defies straightforward genre, resulting in the intriguing first two acts that stay with me. There’s a growing sense of unease as the movie progresses, particularly after Malcolm receives a call that he has to return to the city for work, leaving Liz all by herself.

The cabin in the woods setting allows Perkins to explore both the claustrophobic and isolated nature of its location to draw ominous dread and terror-inducing suspense that deliberately creeps up on you. With Liz now alone, anything can happen in the horror genre. A mysterious stalker, or an entity lurking in the woods, or perhaps a dark secret buried deep in the cabin. The narrative strategy designed to keep us in the dark, wanting us to watch the movie unfold, reminds me of Weapons, a few months ago, which also employs the same structure.

Credits go to Dangerous Animals‘ Nick Lepard’s screenplay, mixing eclectic elements of horror without making them like some random ideas thrown altogether in a blender. Gradual questions arise, like whether Liz’s mind is playing tricks on her as she’s been seeing strange things every now and then, or there’s something else entirely. Keeper equally benefits from its impeccable technicalities, covering from Jeremy Cox’s atmospheric cinematography to Edo Van Breemen’s unsettling score and Danny Vermette’s elegantly stylish production design serving as a subtle visual contrast against the story’s underlying fear of the unknown.

Not to mention Graham Fortin and Greg Ng’s virtuoso editing, which incorporated cross-fades that seamlessly overlapped one scene after another, giving us a varied emotional range from surreal to harrowing throughout the movie. Tatiana Maslany, previously seen in Perkins’ The Monkey over eight months ago, dominates most of the movie here as Liz, a young woman experiencing a state of mixed emotions, and she subtly carries the predominantly one-woman show without succumbing to over-the-top histrionics.

I was almost convinced that Keeper would rank as Perkins’ best movie to date until the third-act reveal nearly derails everything that’s been building up promisingly so far. Let’s say the payoff is rather underwhelming, leading to a surprisingly anticlimactic finale which leaves me unsatisfied. If only Perkins had stuck his landing with a more visceral outcome, the result might have been a solid effort.