Knock Knock (4 Stars)

"It is all a dream".

This is a remake of the 1977 film "Death Game", which I haven't yet seen, but intend to watch soon. It's directed by Eli Roth, who is always guaranteed to produce controversial films.

Keanu Reeves plays Evan Webber, a happily married man with two young children. He's planning to go away for the weekend with his family, but because of important work he has to stay home and let them go away without him. Late at night two girls arrive at his door, soaked from the rain. He lets them in and lets them dry off. But one thing leads to another and they seduce him. After a wild threesome they fall asleep in bed together.

The following morning he regrets what he's done and asks them to leave, but they refuse. He threatens to call the police, but when they tell him they're only 15 he changes his mind. Gentle persuasion fails to make them leave, and they begin to wreck his house.They knock him unconscious, and when he wakes up he's tied to the bed. First they force him to have sex again, then they torture him. They invite him to play a game with him, and if he loses he will have to die.

It's obvious from their first appearance that the girls are deranged, but as the film progresses it becomes apparent just how crazy they are. Keanu Reeves, not the world's best actor, does a reasonable job of portraying a man in fear for his life. The girls, Genesis and Bel, played by Lorenza Izzo and Ana de Armas, are the real stars of the film. Any man could have played the helpless victim.

The film took a while  to get going. The initial conversations after the girls arrive at his house last too long. It was obvious they wanted sex with Evan, and it was obvious that he was tempted, I just wished they would get on with it. But from the sex scene onwards it was a wild ride for the rest of the film. It wasn't as gory as I would have expected after seeing Eli Roth's other films, but it was very scary. Scary and arousing. I could have been the helpless victim.

"It is not a dream".

I shan't give away the ending. All I'll say is that an open end has been left for a sequel. If Eli Roth contacts me I'll send him a list of actors I want to see tortured next.