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The ‘nightmare fuel’ new horror film that has left genre icons shaking in their boots is released in cinemas today.
Keeper is the latest film from Osgood Perkins, best known for directing Longlegs, The Monkey, and The Blackcoat’s Daughter.
His latest eerie tale follows Liz (Tatiana Maslany) as she embarks on a romantic anniversary trip with boyfriend Malcolm (Rossif Sutherland) to his remote family cabin.
Once there, she begins experiencing increasingly sinister phenomena and slowly uncovers the home’s true nature.
Perkins is well known for his skin-crawling films, and Keeper is no different, garnering high praise from the likes of Damien Leone, Bong Joon Ho, and James Wan.
Ahead of the film’s release, Parasite and Mickey 17 creator Bong said: ‘Osgood Perkins has a natural talent for discomfort that transforms into fear.’
Evil Dead and Alien Romulus director Fede Alvarez said it was ‘a sensory experience of pure terror,’ while Green Inferno and Hostel’s Eli Roth compared it to ‘a surreal David Lynch movie.’
Frankenstein’s Guillermo Del Toro added that Keeper is ‘horror origami that skillfully folds into itself’, and Saw icon James Wan described it as ‘a terrifying, ghostly descent into madness.’
Terrifier director Leone said, ‘Perkins further establishes himself as a formidable voice in horror.’
Video game designer Hideo Kojima also heaped praise on the film, writing: ‘Osgood Perkins blends new fear and surprise.’
Critics, however, have been less chilled by Keeper, with the film currently sitting at a lukewarm 65% rating at the time of writing on Rotten Tomatoes.
In their review, Discussing Film described elements of Keeper as ‘nightmare fuel’, but added: ‘Despite its unique premise and a riveting lead performances from Tatiana Maslany, Osgood Perkins’ Keeper fails to cross the finish line in one piece.’
The Guardian said: ‘Part of what makes Perkins’ film so refreshing is the way it prioritizes its visceral effect on an audience over a desire to bend that story into a modern relationship parable.’
The Hollywood Reporter added: ‘Keeper’s narrative lands as gossamer-thin and feather-light despite Maslany’s meaty performance. Better to think of this less as a story than a mood, a procession of unsettling dream logic.’
But IndieWire wrote: ‘Lacking in chemistry, clarity, and conviction, Neon’s latest rendezvous with Perkins hits like a crumbling marriage that would serve everyone involved by ending as soon as possible.’
NME echoed the same sentiment, writing: ‘When Keeper finally reveals itself to be a run-of-the-mill horror with some underwhelming spooks, its artful presentation feels like even more of a cheat.’
Perkins will be heading to our screens once more in the not-too-distant future, with his next horror flick, The Young People, already in production.
Maslany reunited with Perkins for a third time in the cast alongside the likes of Nicole Kidman, Heather Graham, Johnny Knoxville, Lola Tung, Nico Parker, and Brendan Hines.
Keeper is in cinemas now
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