YMMV / Knock at the Cabin

• Alternative Character Interpretation: Redmond, aka Jeff O'Bannon. Was his assault on Andrew in the backstory a legitimate hate crime motivated by homophobia, or was he compelled to do it in order to drive Andrew's Character Development? Likewise, is his participation (and death) in the main plot a form of Laser-Guided Karma, or is he trying to atone for what he did all those years ago?
• Broken Base: Is the movie's ending superior or inferior to the book's?
• Harsher in Hindsight: The first apocalyptic event in the film is a Pacific megatsunami spawned by a pair of massive earthquakes. Within the same week the film was released, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Turkey and Syria, killing tens of thousands of people.
• He Really Can Act: The most praised aspect of the film by far is Dave Bautista's performance. While his prior film roles had already proven him to be a capable and versatile actor, his performance as Leonard, a Well-Intentioned Extremist who genuinely does not want to cause any harm but feels a responsibility to, was widely acclaimed, with many calling it the best performance of his career to date.
• Overshadowed by Controversy: It was immediately noted that nearly every single commercial and ad for the movie plastered M. Night Shyamalan's name all over it with no mention of the author, Paul Tremblay, who wrote the book. The author and publishing community raised a stink over it with good reason, as the ads very much made it seem as if Shyamalan conceived the story, not Tremblay.
• Paranoia Fuel: This film runs on it. The apocalypse happens, the strangers invade the vacation house, and the trauma Andrew, Eric, and Wen are put through.
• Tear Jerker: Eric chooses to be the sacrifice after telling Andrew about a vision he had. In his vision, Andrew grew old, while Wen has become successful in her work and love life, and Wen is still close to Andrew.

---