"Looking for a fresh start after a miscarriage, a couple find themselves being gifted the house of their dreams with one caveat - they can never open the cellar door. Whether they can live without knowing triggers shocking consequences." 

OUR MOVIE REVIEW:

Cellar Door, the latest from Vaughn Stein, is like an unexpected gift - one that deserves to be unwrapped - as it is both entertaining and surprising. Part of that surprise is that Cellar Door has a secret. Like all good secrets, this one has a tale to tell. A beautiful mix of untrust and deception wrapped in a murderous thriller with gorgeous visuals, Cellar Door is an enjoyable story with relatable characters that overcomes its slightly-preposterous fairy tale theme.

The fairy tale presented in this northwestern Oregon setting, is a ridiculously-perfect house gifted to a grieving couple. This house embodies everything they want: a new start, room for a family, a roundabout driveway, plenty of light, and walk-in closets a go-go. Naturally, there is a price. One nonnegotiable condition — they must never open the cellar door. Secrets that reside behind locked doors tend to fester. They ripen and tease. And such seduction can corrupt fairy tale lovers. Cellar Door is a thriller of a show depicting how ripening can soon spoil. 

Written Sam Scott and Lori Evans Taylor, Cellar Door hints at obtaining comfort while diving into loss. John (Scott Speedman) is an architect and Sera (Jordana Brewster) a logic professor. Both are looking for a new start and a chance to successfully start a family when Emmett (the always-suave Laurence Fishburne) offers them a chance of a lifetime. They leap without looking and, like all deals with the devil, are soon dealing with exacerbations from their own secrets: false witness, marital infidelity, and (why not?) murder. 

Stein masterfully sets the scene displaying both the promises and faults of John and Sera; and both are well acted, too. Brewster and Speedman share both realizable ideals and cinematic chemistry. They both have dreams as the innate voodoo of the house becomes a monkey’s paw, making such desires tangible. Yet, they have ghosts to settle first. And, of course, there is the spectre of that damn door teasing and tempting them. Stein plays with thematic extremes, too. The gorgeous interiors of the house collapse into stark claustrophobia. A romantic bond becomes slippery with deceit. Even the selection of vehicles - the couple happily drives a Subaru Ascent, the homewrecker a black Tesla - all plays into a have-and-have-not, want-and-want-not aesthetic.

Similar to Hitchcock’s Rebecca or Edgerton’s The Gift, Stein slowly unties John and Sera’s bright world into a darker, scarier realm.

Cellar Door is a surprisingly entertaining movie that sneaks up on you like a high school reunion. Realism might be cast away at times but this visit to a land of make-believe is worth the 97 minutes. 

Through it all, though, one question remains unanswered. Who does their landscaping?