If you’re a queer woman who loves her horror served with a side of “oh honey, NO,” then What Keeps You Alive (2018) probably already lives rent-free in your head. This little Canadian indie thriller flew under the radar when it dropped, but for a lot of us in the lesbian community, it’s become a cult classic that we both love and kind of hate-watching at 2 a.m. with the lights on.
The setup is deliciously simple: Jules (Brittany Allen) and Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) are a gorgeous married lesbian couple celebrating their one-year anniversary at Jackie’s remote family cabin in the woods. Think cozy flannel vibes, lake views, wine by the fireplace… and then, bam — one tiny push off a cliff later, and suddenly your cute anniversary getaway turns into a full-on fight for survival.
Here’s the thing that makes this movie hit different for lesbian viewers: it’s one of the rare thrillers where the toxic relationship at the center is between two women, and it doesn’t feel exploitative or fetishized. Director Colin Minihan actually gives us a real lesbian couple — flawed, in love, sexual, complicated — and then lets that relationship rot in the most terrifying way possible. No male gaze saving the day, no random dude inserted for “relatability.” Just two women, one cabin, and a whole lot of betrayal.
Hannah Emily Anderson as Jackie is straight-up chilling. She flips from loving wife to cold-blooded predator so smoothly you’ll get whiplash. And Brittany Allen? God, the screams she lets out in this movie… I felt those in my soul. You can practically feel the heartbreak when Jules realizes the woman she married is capable of murdering her without blinking. That moment when trust dies? Every lesbian who’s ever been burned by an ex felt that scene in her bones.
What I love (and low-key hate) about this film is how it plays with lesbian relationship tropes. The “perfect couple” Instagram aesthetic? Shredded. The U-Haul fantasy of moving fast and falling hard? Weaponized. The idea that women are “safer” together? Yeah, the movie laughs in your face and then pushes you off a cliff. It’s like the evil twin of Imagine Me & You or Carol — same sapphic energy, but one of them is a psychopath.
And let’s talk about the representation for a second. In 2018, seeing an openly lesbian couple as the entire emotional core of a horror film — not a subplot, not comic relief, not tragic backstory — was still pretty rare. These are two feminine, attractive, thirty-something women who are unapologetically married to each other. They kiss, they have sex (tastefully shot, thank God), they say “I love you” — and then one tries to murder the other for life insurance money. It’s messed up, but it’s also kind of groundbreaking because it treats lesbian relationships like any other relationship: capable of being just as loving, just as toxic, just as deadly.
The tension is relentless. The isolated location, the slow-burn reveals, the way Jackie gaslights Jules into questioning her own memory… girl, we’ve all dated that woman at least once, right? (Please say I’m not the only one.) The third-act chase through the woods is pure adrenaline, and the final showdown? Iconic. I won’t spoil it, but let’s just say one of them earns a permanent spot on the “villains we love to hate” list alongside Annie Wilkes and Amy Dunne.
Is the movie perfect? Nah. Some plot holes you could drive a truck through, and the ending might divide people. But for a micro-budget thriller, it punches way above its weight. And for lesbian horror fans? It’s essential viewing. It’s scary, it’s sexy, it’s heartbreaking, and it’ll make you side-eye your wife the next time she suggests a “romantic weekend in the woods.”
So yeah, if you’re in the mood for a lesbian thriller that’ll wreck your trust issues and keep you up all night, throw on What Keeps You Alive. Just maybe don’t watch it right after a fight with your girlfriend. Or do. I’m not your mom.
Have you seen it yet? Did Jackie terrify you or turn you on a little? (Be honest.) Drop your thoughts in the comments — I need to know I’m not the only one still recovering from this one.
(And if you’re here from the lesbian horror rabbit hole, check out The Perfection and Fear Street Part
Post a Comment