Movie Review: The Woman in Cabin 10 - Keira Knightley Shines in Netflix’s Gripping Cruise Thriller

So, what did happen to The Woman in Cabin 10?” It is THE question on everyone’s mind when watching the tense psychological thriller, confined to a luxury cruise ship traveling through the picturesque landscape of the Norwegian coastline, the latest from director and screenwriter Simon Stone.

Released October 10 on Netflix, the streaming film stars Keira Knightly as award-winning journalist Laura Blacklock invited on the lavish yacht for an assignment to cover a private charity gala and its benefactors. When she witnesses a supposed passenger going overboard not long into the trip, her claims of such go unheeded by the crew and fellow passengers for the remainder of the voyage, leaving her fighting for her life to uncover the truth.

The film is based on the 2016 novel of the same name by Ruth Ware. Though there are key differences that depart from the original manuscript, to include a bit of Laura Blacklock’s backstory and the resolution at end, the main premise of the movie remains largely in line with the book. 

In the film adaptation, the Aurora Borealis has set sail on its maiden voyage in the waters of Norway, where the scenery and setting serve as a stunning backdrop to the mystery and suspense of the plot.

Invited by a wealthy couple whose money cannot save the dying wife, Knightly’s Laura Blacklock is joined on the cruise with a plethora of posh people — from tech gurus and flamboyant musicians, to socialites and social influencers, and one noted photographer surprisingly familiar to her. Shutterbug Ben Morgan, played by David Ajala, turns out to be the investigative journalist’s ex. Though, two years removed from their pairing, the former couple manage to let the snark and sarcasm of unresolved animosity of their wayward relationship seep into every conversation during their brief time onboard. But, a familiar face may be just what Laura Blacklock needs when things take a dark turn. 

Not long into the trip, the other passengers start to turn on the journalist, as well, when her incessant pandering for answers about the overboard guest puts a damper on their trip, believing that she is either crazy or starved for attention. Despite her ex and even other passengers warning her to drop her snooping, Laura Blacklock cannot escape the push to find the answers to the unfolding mystery; she remains dogged in her search for the truth and vindication, leaving her often isolated and ostracized. Particularly, when it becomes known to the other guests that the journalist has just come off a traumatic experience witnessing the death of informant by drowning. Could she be confusing the two events?!

For those who have never read the book, watching the events unfold can become quite maddening as you, yourself, begin to question how the film will ultimately explain away who we know to be once there, but is now gone, with those who should know claiming that who never existed. As I said, it’s maddening.

For anyone who has grown up watching Knightly build her acting career in films such Bend It Like Beckham and the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, it is refreshing to see the maturity and depth of her performance working through that psychological madness, as the seasoned journalist hell-bent on speaking truth as the voice of the voiceless — whether in her work or personal  life. At once, determined and dogmatic in what she knows to be reality, the character also displays a quiet vulnerability and sensitivity as she finds herself standing alone on this quest for answers. 

The film’s pacing and frantic explanation of what is known information by the lead protagonist, Knightly’s performance is stripped of any overt Hollywood pomp and circumstance, leaving behind a work of her art that is decidedly engaging and relatable. 

Nevertheless, the film still feels eerily similar to the Hitchcock style of the-mind-playing-tricks as a cinematic construct of another film. In the 2005 thriller Flight Plan, starring Jodie Foster, a woman boards a plane with her daughter, falls asleep and discovers that the little girl is missing. In a frenzy to locate her missing child she frightens both crew and passengers alike in a search that may be only in her mind. The scenes in this latest thriller of Knightly painfully explaining what she knows she saw in that cabin were similar to Foster’s frantic pleas of the same vibration trying to convince anyone who would listen that she, in fact, boarded that plane with her child. 

That use of dramatic irony in both films, where the audience is aware of crucial information that the supporting characters are not, is classic Hitchcock. The technique intensifies the engagement and emotional response you have as the viewer, making you much more invested in the outcome, often eagerly shouting at the screen, yourself, that ”she’s telling the truth!”

In a star-studded cast, Knightly shares the screen with the likes of Hannah Waddington in her role as a Heidi Heatherly, a well-to-do millionaire onboard with her husband as donors to their hosts’ foundation. While Waddington is always a joy to watch, her role this go-round is not too much of a departure from her well-known character Rebecca Welton on the uber popular Ted Lasso series across the grid on Apple+ TV. It was not too much of a stretch to see Waddington serve up another decent performance as a strong woman of wealth, with a sharp wit and humor, and nary a refreshing beverage not far from her hands.

The film also stars Critics’ Choice Award winner Guy Pearce (Mildred Pierce), playing Richard Bullmer as the wealthy influential businessman who has arranged the cruise for his dying wife, Anne. At the start, Bullmer is the charming host of the luxury liner. But, his patience wears thin with the journalist and her claims that something sinister is afloat. No pun intended. Always dominant in his performances, Pearce once again allows his onscreen persona and subsequent personality to consume him as he moves his character effortlessly between affable man of privilege, aggrieved husband, and ambiguous antagonist, with a style that is as intriguing as it is intense.

Sadly, to dive too deep into the plotline and how individual scenes playout in the film would open you up to putting all the pieces together, well before it's time. And, what makes this film work comes in allowing the tension to build organically  to create that much-needed suspense to lock you in to see how it all ends, for yourself. So, in much the same way as the voyage of the Aurora Borealis, Cabin 10 will remain locked for the remainder of this review.

Do not keep yourself in suspense. See if you can can figure it all out before it's too late for The Woman in Cabin 10. Streaming among now on Netflix. Watch it before someone spoils it. 

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