Knock At The Cabin Twist explained – Rupert Grint’s Redmond is the key to everything

M. Night Shyamalan’s film Knock At The Cabin is perhaps the simplest of all his films. There is no major twist, no shocking revelation, just sadness and hope. Regardless of your feelings about Knock At The Cabin, you were probably left with some questions as the film’s credits closed. While it wasn’t as ambiguous as the novel it’s based on by Paul Tremblay, there are still some questions. When four strangers show up at Andrew and Eric’s remote Philadelphia cabin, calling themselves unwilling messengers of the end of the world, the pair must decide how far they’re willing to go to save themselves and possibly the world.

The four people who knock on Andrew and Eric’s door all believe they are on a mission to save the world. Leonard, Bautista’s colossal leader, explains that they each represent a facet of humanity. Three of them are attributed to being admired. It’s the best things about people. Leonard is guidance, Sabrina heals, Adriane is the caretaker, and Rupert Grint’s (Servant) character Redmond is malice. While the other three become sympathetic harbingers of disaster, Redmond is the most important of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse as suggested by Shyamalan. He is the first to die and has the least amount of screen time, but his message is crucial to Andrew and Eric’s final decision.

Andrew and Rupert, Grint’s Redmond, have more in common than we think.

Andrew and Eric don’t believe the group early on. How could they? It’s an absurd story that loses credibility once Andrew recognizes Grint’s Redmond as a man named O’Bannon who brutally assaulted him in a bar years ago. He was drunk, bigoted and mean. Andrew, who has always had a temper, threw himself into training to regain the control he lost. He learned to fight and shoot, while desperately clawing back some of the security that O’Bannon took from him.

Their collective reaction speaks volumes about the differences between Andrew and Eric. Eric is sweet and hopeful. He is tender and kind, choosing to avoid danger rather than fight it. He does not take risks and does not scold the circumstances. Eric retains a childlike wonder that allows optimism to blossom. Andrew doesn’t worry about the little things like sunscreen and a cold because he’s preoccupied with the big injustices. He is comfortable with the many dangers of life that surround us, but is suspicious of everyone except Eric. He is practical and angry. When Leonard, Redmond, Adriane and Sabrina arrive at the cabin, their decision is made long before anyone realizes it, and it all stems from Redmond.

Since Andrew shares some of the same anger as Redmond, forcing him and Eric to choose to end one of their lives in order to save humanity, the ultimate redemption arc is set up. Their sacrifice frees Andrew from his anger. It’s not fair and, no doubt, an injustice no one should have to put up with, but it’s what was asked for. Andrew isn’t violent and wouldn’t purposefully hurt anyone like Redmond, but he’s still full of anger and fear. When he shoots Eric, he rejects his angry, resentful and terrified side and accepts Eric’s gifts. He chooses forgiveness and hope.

Why Redmond/O’Bannon is so important

At first, it seems that Rupert Grint’s name change to Redmond proves the group to be insane. Andrew tells Eric he recognizes the man as his attacker and tries to convince everyone that a bulletin board and an overzealous cult leader tricked them. In the end, that turns out not to be true; one by one the horseman releases floods, plagues, diseases and fire from the sky. If it weren’t for Redmond, Andrew wouldn’t be able to learn from his sacrifice. This family was chosen because their love was pure. It was also chosen because Andrew needed to forgive. Whether you agree that Redmond deserves forgiveness is irrelevant. His role in the process was to create doubt, just as he does in life. Andrew’s role was to rise above it and find peace. We needed malice, the human quality that Redmond represented, to really know what Andrew was sacrificing for.

Humans are messy and flawed and do more wrong than right. They are also capable of great compassion and kindness. Without the bad, we wouldn’t understand how wonderful the good is. It’s impossible not to explore the religious undertones of Knock At The Cabin. The God presented in the film is an Old Testament fire and brimstone god who constantly demands sacrifices and tests us. Same God tested Abraham by asking him to kill his son Isaac. It is not so much about forgiveness as it is about obedience. Every horseman is sent to slaughter because they are more tools than people, regardless of their value to society. Arguably the least valuable member is Redmond due to his previous evil deeds. Presumably this was not the first time he reacted violently to someone. He is the hardest to find something interchangeable in.

When Andrew and Eric choose to save the world for Wen, they also choose to see the value in the likes of Redmond/O’Bannon. O’Bannon changes his name in hopes of making the decision easier for the family. It wasn’t so much about cheating as it needed to be. What he failed to understand, however, was that they had to see what he represented in order to devote themselves fully to the sacrifice. If he presented another positive trait, there would be no conflict. The only question would be whether or not the couple believed the intruders. Redmond created doubt simply by being present. In the end, he brought symmetry to Andrew’s story and character arc.

Knock At The Cabin is mainly about the things that make us human. The good, the bad and the ugly are all presented and all require understanding. However, Andrew and Eric’s sacrifice makes more sense as they chose to save the world for everyone, even the world’s Redmonds. Rupert Grint, who did such an excellent job on Servant, stars in the briefest of emotional scenes proving that even the worst of us can be forgiven. Without Grint, the story would have been bland and trite. With him it is an example of humanity’s capacity for love. Andrew chose to kill Eric to save Wen, but he knew he was also saving people like Redmond. It was then that he decided to believe that there were more Leonards than O’Bannons in the world, which was worth saving.