Keeper - 4K Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Keeper



Movie:
4K Video:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


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Movie
Director Osgood Perkins is one of those film directors I really REALLY want to love due to how well the man deals with atmosphere and mood with his horror films. While most of his films have turned out to be rather lackluster and middling over the years, his atmospheric presence is incredibly dense and palpable, which makes the lackluster stories feel all the most frustrating, being that you could feel just how good the movie could have been with a better story combined with a heavily textured atmosphere. And guess what, Keeper is more of the same. A good well textured film that oozes creepy atmospheric presence, but is a jumbled mess of cliches and loose ends that go nowhere, leaving the audience feeling a little gypped at the end.

Our film is really a two person story revolving around lovers Liz (Tatiana Maslany) and her doctor boy toy Malcolm (Rossif Sutherland), who are heading out to his cabin in the woods to celebrate their 1 year anniversary (much to the chagrin of Liz’s friend, who thinks that she’s just the side piece for this rich doctor). All seems to be going swimmingly for the two love birds, until Malcolm’s cousin Darren and his model girlfriend crash the party. The mood is flipped and suddenly Malcolm starts to “rush” the romance a bit. Forcing her to eat a chocolate cake that she doesn’t want, Liz wakes up in the middle of the night feeling a bit drugged. And to make matters worse, Malcolm gets called away the very next morning to take care of a comatose patient.

As the day goes by Liz’s friend seems to be right, as she begins to experience intense visions, horrific feelings of terror, and a growing suspicion that her boyfriend’s cabin may be under some sort of supernatural presence. A qualm that is brought to reality when Malcolm gets back, sees that Liz is alive (shocker), and unveils to her his grand plan for bringing her up to the cabin this weekend.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see where this film is going from the get go. We have a pretty standard setup with Malcolm taking his girlfriend out to a remote cabin in the woods, and his standoffish behavior is already cluing the audience in that there is more to him than meets the eye. But around the 2nd act it become really obvious that writer Nick Lepart is not the strongest screenwriter in the business. The film just gets bogged down in side plot lines, and thematic visuals that go nowhere. Even when Malcolm sits down and reveals his grand plan (and why he’s doing it) absolutely nothing makes sense. If you go with the flow and just enjoy the film for the vibe, then I can kind of see some positives to the flick. But as a whole the film falls apart with a bizarre folklore type explanation that doesn’t really explain HALF of what’s going on. And an ending that is so out of left field that Lepard and Perkins didn’t even bother TRYING to explain. They just simply said “yeah, the audience is gonna go for it” and left it at that.




Rating:

Rated R for some violent content/gore, language, and some sexual references.




4K Video: Video:

I could find next to ZERO information on the cameras used or the resolution of the master, but judging with my own eyes and what little google-fu I have, I can estimate this was a digital shoot, and most LIKELY (please, if anyone has any information to the contrary, I will happily update this section) a 4K master for the home video release. And all of that to segue into my more critical points.

All in all, the 4K UHD disc looks rather nice. It’s not a super stunning transfer, but Osgood Perkins does an amazing job texturing this film. We’re privy to tons of honey browns, diffused and hazy sequences that feature good detail, balance with a dreamy ambiance that keeps things from being SUPER sharp. The interior of the cabin looks amazing, with mostly sharp details across the board, but once we go into the misty forest, or down into the cellar, things can get dark and murky fast. I did notice some mild crush and what seems like some creamy blacks downstairs, but I still feel that it was less artifacting, and more the visual haze that Perkins has infused into ever pore of this film. Instead of being super saturate with bright and shiny colors, Keeper opts for a more laid back and grounded look, with warm colors that are certainly strong, but don’t really pop off the screen. Flesh tones look good, though I sometimes felt skin pores looked a bit smooth, and other than those slightly creamy blacks, I really couldn’t find any artifactijg on the disc,









Audio:

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA is no Dolby Atmos, but still a good pleasing mix that should suit most people fine. Kind of like the video, the audio mix isn’t flashy, nor is it wild and crazy. Instead it opts for a more subtle and gentle mix that does things well, but doesn’t try to be stand out in any way. The dialogue is strong and cleanly replicated up in the front of the room, and ambiance is created through subtle use of surrounds. The creak of a wood board, the hum of music VERY lightly in the background. Or simply the thud of Malcolm’s cousin pounding on the door. LFE is not exactly a powerhouse, but it does come out to play in a few instances (such as the ending sequence, or the pounding on the door previously mentioned). I was a TAD surprised, as horror films are legendary for making up any deficiencies in the script with a powerhouse audio mix, but Keeper well done, just a bit subtle.












Extras:

• Audio commentary with director Osgood Perkins

Final Score: ​

I’m not gonna lie here. I wanted to like Keeper, and in many ways I really started to like the film more than once. Perkins does an amazing job setting the mood with creep and terror, but he had a bad habit of just getting too caught up in the art house elements of the movie and narrative bits and exposition go straight out window. Effectively leaving the audience wondering just what’s going on. I’m pretty good at dissecting allegory and imagery, but this feels incomplete in many ways. Like there was a few bits in every scene that was left out that COULD have expounded on the story. Maslany is fantastic in the role, and Rossif Sutherland is deliciously creepy in a mild mannered sort of way. But none of that can overcome the fairly mediocre story that just won’t let me enjoy the creep factor. Skip It.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Tatiana Maslany, Rossif Sutherland, Birkett Turton, Eden Weiss
Directed by: Osgood Perkins
Written by: Nick Lepard
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 HEVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, English DVS
Subtitles: English SDH
Studio: Decal Releasing
Rated: R
Runtime: 98 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: January 3rd, 2026

Recommendation: Skip It.