The unravelling of a woman’s mind takes centre stage in Frida Kempff’s Knocking. We meet Molly, played by Cecilia Milocco, as she is discharged from ‘Ward 17’. We’re never explicitly told for what reason she was admitted, but memories of her former lover point to tragedy and a nervous breakdown of some kind. Once released, she is moved into a new apartment. Initially the place seems fine, Molly enjoying watching life unfold in the street below and she befriends a bird, but then the knocking begins. This sound occurs on and off, day and night, but no matter how hard she tries to identify its source, she draws up a blank. Stranger still, Molly seems to be the only person capable of hearing it. Are the noises real or did Molly leave her institution too soon?
Knocking works as a great metaphor for the way our society treats women. Molly is belittled by everyone she encounters, even before she’s even spiralled that far down the rabbit hole. At first she merely mentions to her new neighbours about the noise and politely requests that, if it is they that are responsible for it, could they please keep it down. Even this simple enough request is met with derision and so as she becomes more determined, she is listened to less and less. It’s a stark fact that this mirrors our own world, Kempff putting her finger right on the pulse of how it feels to be a woman in the modern era.
With Knocking, Kempff masterfully crafts the slow steady decline of a mind on edge. The director perfectly captures feelings of isolation and paranoia, and when coupled with Milocco’s excellent performance, the film takes on a life of its own. There’s a stifling sense of claustrophobia buried within every shot, and whilst some of that comes from the primary location of Molly’s small accommodation, more comes via clever camerwork. Kempff keeps the camera trained on Molly for as much of the film as possible. The shots are all framed up close and tight, Molly filling the frame. As the narrative progresses, and Molly begins to become unhinged, the camerawork becomes steadily more erratic and creeps ever closer until it is right up on Molly; The camera becomes literally strapped to Milocco as she races around desperate for somebody to believe her story.
As much as it should be the titular knocking that causes the bulk of distress, one can’t help but think it is actually the incessant ringing of Molly’s phone that really pushes her over the edge. It does not help that her ringtone is that of an ever-quacking duck, but it is the constant pressure and borderline harassment of her former ward doctor that surely steers her down a dark path. She is trying to put her past behind her, but the constant badgering makes it impossible. Once again this presents yet another facet of modern day womanhood where everybody seems to have an opinion on every aspect of your life.
A real masterclass of building tension and character work, Knocking invites the viewer to be a spectator for the downfall of a character who is simply trying to live her life. The parallels to real life will be confronting for some and a reality for others, but all will be kept on the edge of their seat.
Knocking
Summary
You’ll never hear a door knock the same way again after sitting through this increasingly tense spiral of a broken mind.
Knocking was reviewed at Arrow Video FrightFest 2021. FrightFest Presents and Signature Entertainment present Knocking on Digital Platforms 15th November
