Knock knock

It starts like an erotic dream of many men: when architect Evan (Keanu Reeves), devoted husband and father, spends a weekend alone in his smart home to work in peace, suddenly the doorbell rings. Standing outside are two young women, soaked to the skin. Evan lets Genesis (Lorenza Izzo) and Bel (Ana De Armas) in so they can dry their clothes and call a cab. When the two girlfriends want to show him their gratitude in a very special way, Evan initially refuses. But when they drag him naked into the shower, he can't resist. So far, so good. But the erotic fantasy turns into a solid nightmare the next morning. For the two girls are suddenly no longer the shy seductresses, but cold-blooded femme fatales who want to destroy Evan's tranquil family life once and for all.

With Knock Knock, Eli Roth returns after an eight-year break from directing. After Hostel 2 he made a few short films and directed an episode of the series Hemlock Grove but he took a break from feature films. Now Roth is releasing two films in quick succession: the cannibal horror Green Inferno and the thriller Knock Knock. The latter is rather tame by Roth's standards. Although there is a certain intensity and cruelty in the story itself, the filmmaker refrains from the crude bloodshed this time. The horror is supposed to play out more on a psychological level in this educational film about the consequences of marital infidelity.

This works quite well in some scenes. Especially when the sizzling Ménage-à-trois turns into a nightmarish squat, the entertainment value is clearly catapulted in parallel with the horror scenarios in the minds of the male viewers. Here, the thriller reveals a potential that unfortunately gets lost again in many places. The reason for this is the way too exaggerated acting of the actors. The hysteria that the two crazed sirens display, at some point just seems annoying and no longer threatening. While they are still absolutely convincing in the scenes where they wrap Evan around their fingers, the two actresses deliver rather unintentionally funny performances here. And even Keanu Reeves tries unsuccessfully to give his character's desperation, anger and fear the credibility it needs.

The ending is thankfully nasty enough to make up for some of the weak points. But unfortunately, Knock Knock reveals that Eli Roth as a filmmaker lacks the subtlety necessary to flesh out a psychological thriller in all its intensity and also subtlety. The film has very entertaining moments, a few successful shock moments, but also some scenes that are simply badly acted and staged to be laughable. Nevertheless, the positive aspects of the first third and the finale are strong enough to be able to attest the strip a worth seeing

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp