Reviews are falling into one of two categories – those who get Roth and those who don’t.
Nick HC has included a brief review of Knock Knock in his post for Hollywood Chicago that took a look at three films. He said the following about the film.
While Roth’s previous presentations of that punishment have felt pointlessly mean-spirited, “Knock Knock” is firmly within the bounds of wild comedy, and Reeves proves a great putz. In a role that will further stoke the fires of a career that continues to have an appeal, Reeves hurls himself into the film’s fire with a Nicolas Cage-like zeal. He has a tangent in the third act defending his choices, and it’s the new absurdity that “Knock Knock” could use more of, which Reeves advancing further than Roth in terms of what they can offer audiences.
Matt Reifschneider reviewed Knock Knock for Blood Brothers Film Reviews and gave it three drops of blood. He said the following about the film:
The humor is fairly spot on and the ridiculousness of the plot is fun in a grindhouse gimmick technique, but Knock Knock almost feels too reserved for its own good and it feels like a director who purposefully chained himself to try something new. I will say this: I was massively entertained by the film and, quite frankly, that’s the biggest win this film could achieve here.
During my film festival screening, a dozen people walked out of the movie. I would say twice as many as that gave it a standing ovation at the end. So yes, the film is a bit dividing in how it goes about things.
Anthony Kaufman reviewed Knock Knock for Screen Daily. He didn’t like the filmand said the following:
Knock Knock offers little redemption or even unclean satisfaction, preferring to reduce its entire project to a cruel Facebook joke.
Eric Walkuski reviewed the film for JoBlo and also didn’t like Knock Knock.
In the end, I must admit KNOCK KNOCK does have entertainment value in that it works in a “so bad it’s good” kind of way, but it seems doubtful that’s the kind of thing Roth’s fans were hoping for from his latest. Maybe I’m just not getting the joke of it all, but as a fan of Reeves, KNOCK KNOCK left me mortified.