Universal, out now on Digital, 4K, Blu-ray and DVD

A family are taken hostage and forced to make a choice that will have huge consequences…

Having thoroughly enjoyed Paul Tremblay’s novel on which this is based – as did our reviewer at the time – I had high hopes for this M. Night Shyamalan version. Unfortunately it doesn’t live up to its initial promise.

A lot of this comes down to the storytelling choices Shyamalan makes, altering Tremblay’s plot quite considerably and then somehow making it feel as if the action in the cabin and what’s going on outside are not as connected as they absolutely need to be. (Telling a story in a different medium inevitably leads to changes, but they should play to the strengths of that medium; that’s not the case with the alterations here.) This is nothing against the central performances – Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge and Kristen Cui in particular are strong throughout, and Dave Bautista reminds us that he is far more than just a Bond heavy or Drax the Destroyer – but such an outlandish idea has to be sold completely for it to work… and here it isn’t.

The Blu-ray release looks and sounds excellent, and it’s a shame there’s not a commentary addressing some of the changes – it’s just one of a number of elements dealt with in the 24-minute making of feature, which is part of a small extras package.

Verdict: Never quite convincing, despite its cast’s best endeavours. 5/10

Paul Simpson