Keeper (2025)

Trailers don't usually have me intrigued but Keeper did which I suppose is the sign of a good trailer. Liz was in quote marks whereas Malcolm wasn't so I was curious as to why Liz’s name was put up the way it was. The set up is Liz and Malcolm go to a cabin in the woods which was always going to end badly and shortly after arriving things start to go weird. 

Even though this essentially features two main characters, Tatiana Maslany is really the star of the film as she goes through the wringer in. The scene where she is in the basement with the multi-faced woman was terrifying because of how Liz reacted to it. At first I was confused why Liz and Malcolm would be together because there seemed to be tension from the very beginning. Rossif Sutherland is ok as Malcolm. I never found myself thinking that he was sinister even when the twist happens. Birkett Turton is ok as Darren even though he has about three scenes in total that amount to less than five minutes and then there is Eden Weiss as Minka who probably has about five lines and then dies behind a tree. The film only really has five characters and one of those is on the phone.  

The revelation that Malcolm bought Liz to be killed by the creatures so that he and his brother could live forever was something I wasn't expecting. It worked in the context of this film although it was a slightly risky bringing someone who looked like the woman who started it all to be sacrificed. The fact that they chose not to kill her and ask her to stay thus making Malcolm turn old and Darren killed was an amusing way to end the film. The film ends with Malcolm having his head dunked in some goo. Even though Liz has been consumed by the evil spirit the film tries to make you happy that Malcolm got his comeuppance and to the film's credit I was satisfied with the outcome.  The sacrificing of people for selfish gain did remind me of Ready or Not and that is a compliment. I think this film pulls it off better because its more creative but I was thinking that when the revelation happened.

The isolated setting is something that I really liked about this film. Apart from a scene at the beginning and the occasional moment in the woods, the entirety of the film takes place in this cabin which looks so strange and I honestly couldn’t imagine anyone enjoying themselves while they were there. The lack of curtains would put me off straight away. Even when the story moves outside the film still feels claustrophobic. It never feels like the vast openness that you would expect from the woods. 

I was slightly disappointed with The Monkey but this felt like a return to form. It felt like it took a while to get going but once it did it felt like some of Osgood Perkins’ early stuff. Keeper is a good horror film that works well in the sense that it's a very stripped back horror film that uses its setting well. Oh and this is the second time this year that a poster has spoiled the twists. Luckily I didn’t look too closely at the poster but Liz’s eyes are glossed over which happens at the end. The other film was Companion. Can the marketing people at the film studios STOP SPOILING THINGS. The poster would work just as well with normal eyes.