He is a doctor in the city and she, an artist. They seem to be a loving couple, though he is a tad more guarded than her when it comes to natural expressions of affection. We stay with them as she explores the house, which belongs to him but which she has never visited before. She is fascinated by the nooks, crannies and character of the artistic building.
As the evening progresses, we start to see one or two cracks in their relationship. She is clearly not too happy with some of his conversational remarks, but the evening is washed down with plenty of wine and all seems well. There is a chocolate cake in a box on the kitchen table. Malcolm encourages her to have a taste, explaining that the 'housekeeper' always bakes it for his arrival, even though Liz insists she doesn't like chocolate.
Just at this point, there is a bang on the door. Malcolm’s cousin, Darren, who lives nearby in another cabin, turns up with an attractive young woman - a foreign model who speaks virtually no English. They have a quick drink before Darren and his friend leave Malcolm and Liz to it. When the men are out of the room, Minka, the model, looks sideways at the cake and then back at Liz, telling her that it "tastes like shit". Liz is taken aback but cannot get anything more out of Minka before they depart.
Liz has a mouthful of the chocolate cake to be agreeable, takes a bath and they go to bed. During the night, Liz heads to the kitchen, devours a huge handful of the cake and returns to sleep. In the morning, Malcolm announces he has received a message from a patient at death's door and must do the professional thing and visit. He says he will be back - presumably this being the Saturday of the weekend - by 6pm. While he is gone, Darren turns up with a bottle of whisky. Surprised to find Liz still there, he invites himself in and tries to persuade her to have a drink with him while they wait for Malcolm’s return.
And that is just about all I can tell you without entering spoiler territory. It becomes a slow-burn arthouse horror after this, reminding me of the approach adopted in Men (2022) and other smart, thoughtful horrors. The thrills are brought about not by silly jump-scares but by unsettling spooks, atmosphere, imagery and tension - of which it has bucketfuls! The house itself is very much a main player in the story, as Perkins maximises the cinematography to wring out every drop of suspense through camera angles, light, shadow and suggestion. It works incredibly well and feels very Hitchcockian.
So, let the story unfold from here - which it does at a slightly speedier pace once the first third of the film is over - as we find out exactly what is going on, what has happened in the past and deep-dive into a series of sinister events. There is a superb finale that pulls all the strings of the tale together, with twists, turns and surprises along the way. I think the imagery here is the real winner, though the performances are great as well, especially Maslany in the lead. Well worth a look and streaming now in the UK on various platforms. Recommended for fans of smart, not silly, horror!
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