The new horror film Keeper delivers a chilling conclusion where a centuries-old cycle of violence is finally broken. Directed by Osgood Perkins, the movie reveals that some debts, even those 200 years old, eventually come due. The story transforms from a simple cabin-in-the-woods thriller into a complex tale of karmic justice, where the hunter becomes the hunted.
The Boyfriend With a Dark Secret
Liz, played by Tatiana Maslany, arrives at a remote cabin for a romantic getaway with her boyfriend, Malcolm, a man who appears to be a dedicated doctor. The trip quickly turns unsettling. Liz experiences strange visions of other women and encounters disturbing creatures around the property. She finds herself drawn to a chocolate cake she normally dislikes, unaware it was drugged by Malcolm.
Malcolm’s true plan is far more sinister than infidelity. He leaves Liz alone at the cabin, where his creepy cousin Darren intensifies the fear. After Liz survives a harrowing encounter, Malcolm returns and is forced to reveal the truth. He is not the man he claims to be.
A 200-Year-Old Pact for Immortality
The film’s climax unveils the horrifying backstory through a flashback. Two hundred years ago, a young Malcolm and his cousin shot a pregnant woman they found trespassing on their land. The woman, believed to be a witch, gave birth to a horde of monstrous creatures before she died.
Malcolm and his cousin discovered a grim bargain. The creatures would grant them immortality in exchange for a steady supply of human flesh. For two centuries, the men lured women to the cabin, sacrificing them to feed the witchlings and sustain their own endless lives. The visions Liz saw were the ghosts of Malcolm’s many past victims.
The Twist: The Prey Becomes the Powerful
Malcolm intended for Liz to be his next sacrifice. However, his plan failed because Liz shares an uncanny resemblance with the witch he killed long ago. When Malcolm locks Liz in the basement with the creatures, they do not attack her. Instead, they recognize her as their mother and embrace her.
This connection severs Malcolm’s deal. He rapidly ages, losing the immortality he had clung to for so long. The power dynamic completely flips. Liz, now aligned with the supernatural creatures and with the same jet-black eyes as the original witch, takes control.
She captures Malcolm, force-feeds him the drugged chocolate cake, and dunks his head into a pot of a honey-like substance, effectively ending his long, cruel life.
Is Liz the Witch’s Reincarnation?
The film strongly suggests that Liz is either a reincarnation of the original witch or is possessed by her spirit. Her physical resemblance to the woman is the initial clue. Furthermore, she experiences visions and knowledge that belong to the murdered witch and her victims, indicating a deep, spiritual link.
Tatiana Maslany shared her thoughts on the ending, noting its thematic depth.
“I enjoy a lot about that ending. It just gets so many ideas going in my head about the roles that we have been predetermined societally to play and also the horror of domesticity – the terror of not knowing who your partner is.”
She described the story as being about “this man who wanted to live forever, and used women to give him life, to make him live forever, and they were expendable. And so it’s interesting that Liz doesn’t fit into that box for whatever reason, and kind of changes the pattern.”
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The Final Meaning of Keeper’s Ending
The ending of Keeper is a definitive conclusion about karmic justice. Malcolm’s 200-year reign of manipulation and murder concludes with him suffering a fate similar to his victims. The creatures, once a tool of his evil, become the instruments of his downfall.
Liz’s transformation is left somewhat open, but she is clearly no longer a victim. She becomes the new keeper of the cabin and the powerful mother to the witchlings, finally breaking the cycle of violence that began two centuries earlier.
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