On the surface, Hugo Keijzer‘s The Occupant appears as if it’ll be another entrant in the survivalist drama genre, focusing on a young woman, seemingly out of her depth as she battles the elements of an unflinching nature. The Georgia-Russia border serves as the primary setting, with Ella Balinska‘s Abby serving as Keijzer’s focal point, a geologist struggling to accept the terminal diagnosis of her sister who endeavours to find a cure through a pricy treatment program. In order to raise the funds, she agrees to a job in a remote Georgian biome, only to be left stranded in the wilderness when her plane crashes on its journey.
Beautiful to behold, but terrifying in its reality, the Georgian mountains and the icy snow that adorns are only one of the formidable elements Abby has to face, with Keijzer’s script – written in conjunction with Philip M. Howe, Roelof Jan Minneboo and Xiao Tang – not playing by expected rules, lacing Abby’s journey with a reflective lens on one’s own grief, as well as a science-fiction mentality that toys with audience perception as to how reliable a narrator Abby truly is.
The Occupant is more than a mere woman versus nature tale, with the inclusion of John (Rob Delaney), an American pilot who was also involved in the crash, throwing both an emotional and psychological spanner into the works. He’s simply a voice on the other end of Abby’s airwave, seemingly guiding through the terrain towards presumed safety. They bond in the process, but there’s always a minute feeling that he can’t be completely trusted, and it’s their back-and-forth that keeps The Occupant undeniably intriguing as it escalates towards revelations that are never neatly telegraphed for invested audiences.
It’s a bold offering from Keijzer, and with a merging of such genres as science fiction and survivalist drama, it’s a testament to his skills as storyteller that everything feels as fluid as it does. It’s also of immense benefit that he has an actress of Balinska’s strength to carry the film on her shoulders (almost quite literally). Essentially a solo feature for the majority of its 104 minutes, Balinska creates Abby as someone we genuinely want to see survive. And as physically capable as she is, it’s the emotional aspect of Abby’s journey that highlights Balinska’s dedication and tenacity.
A familiar story structure that bathes itself in a twisted sense of self, The Occupant revels in both its sci-fi and action temperament as it details a haunting tale of grief and acceptance.
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
The Occupant is available On Digital and screening in select theatres in the United States from August 8th, 2025, before releasing On Digital in Australia and New Zealand on September 3rd.
