'The Woman in Cabin 10' Review: Keira Knightley Shines In Lackluster Netflix Crime Thriller

The film, with its moody palette and muted color grade, is the perfect transitional watch for anyone who's craving something between this year's zany summer blockbusters and all the upcoming Halloween movies. And the central mystery, surrounding the question of who Lo actually saw go overboard, is a great whodunnit for Agatha Christie lovers.

Thanks to her place in the zeitgeist, Keira is an actress you immediately trust as a viewer, even if it's subconscious. So she's the perfect actress to lead this project, and she absolutely delivers. Lo is the ultimate embodiment of earnest determination, and from providing the world with "human interest [pieces] for inhumane times" with her work to trying to survive a potentially deadly holiday, Keira's performance draws you right into the middle of the story.

A particularly memorable scene features Lo get pushed into the pool before her attacker closes the top, leaving Lo to pound on the glass leading to the boat's party room. I'm always particularly aware of how much oxygen is in my lungs at any time, so watching Keira fight for air (and survive in the knick of time!) definitely increased my heart rate.

Unfortunately, despite the wealth of talent in the film's cast — Hannah Waddingham! Kaya Scodelario! Gugu Mbatha-Raw! — I'd say they're incredibly underused. (But honestly, if your problem is that your cast isn't in the movie enough, that's a pretty good problem to have). Even if the movie is a crime thriller, Hannah's presence in particular provided the perfect amount of levity I looked forward to every time she appeared onscreen.

The Woman in Cabin 10 kept me on my toes as evidence disappeared, revelations were made, and Lo's safety hung in the balance. But while Keira's performance is a standout, the story doesn't grip the viewer as strongly as the cast does. I wasn't as actively invested in every scene as I'd hoped, and I found myself rooting for Lo because she was played by Keira, not because she was a character I wanted to see succeed.

But even if the script left something to be desired, the film's big reveal (that the passenger who went overboard was actually host Richard Bullmer's dying wife, whom he murdered to keep their money in the family) genuinely surprised me. And a particular turn of events near the end of the film (which I'll keep to myself because this is one scene I really don't want to spoil) had me genuinely sad!

So despite the cozy mystery vibes, and the fact Lo is another wonderful performance to add to Keira Knightley's career, viewers might be left wondering whether the cast is able to carry the weight of the rest of the movie.