The release was delayed many times (due to MGM’s then-financial problems), but finally, Lionsgate brings it to the big screen. Director Drew Goddard and producer Joss Whedon take us to the scary “The Cabin in the Woods.”
CABIN IN THE WOODS
Liongate
MPAA Rated “R”
Running Time: 105 minutes
Studio Synopsis:
Five friends go to a remote cabin in the woods. Bad things happen.
If you think you know this story, think again. From fan favorites Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard comes THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, a mind blowing horror film that turns the genre inside out. Produced by Whedon and directed by Goddard from a script by both, the film stars Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford. Lionsgate presents a Mutant Enemy production.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJUIgf7lsCY[/youtube]
J.P.’s Take:
It’s been ages since I’ve viewed a truly hair raising horror flick, let alone seeing a good one in theaters. For those of you reading my reviews and my profile, you know that I enjoy a good horror film. Now, I’m not a huge fan of the super bloody slasher films — although there are some good ones out there — but rather I like the ones that startle you psychologically and emotionally. With the exception of the “Scream” series, I’ve been pretty board with horror films as of late. I believe few studios these days understand what frightens audiences these days; instead they rely on blood shed to keep their attention. Not to mention they continue to produce the same predictable, formulaic layout, seen time after time in numerous fright fests. I can’t say that about “The Cabin in the Woods.”
Leave it to the wicked minds of co-writer/co-producer Joss Whedon (TV’s “Buffy the Vampire Slayer, “ “Firefly, ” “Angel,” upcoming The Avengers”) and co-writer / director Andrew Goddard (writer for “Cloverfield,” and TV’s “Lost” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) to take what you know about the average horror/thriller and turn the formula on its head. I can assure you this isn’t the “Scooby Doo” capers either.
What’s so different about this film you may ask?
Well, I’ll try to explain with out spoiling it for anyone. I consider “Cabin” to be the anti-horror – horror film. Sure it’s dark, twisted with a sadistic sense of humor woven in as only Whedon and Goddard, who have collaborated in many projects, can produce.
A few curious scenes set off the creepy cabin story, which appear to be typical at first glance. You know, however, there is something much more involved going on beneath the surface here. We are let in on some inside info, with scenes from an underground lab. There you’ll find a couple of technicians Richard Sitterson (Bradley Whitford) and Steve Hadley (Richard Jenkins) punching buttons, while watching several monitors. HHMM! Flash forward to 5 young adults getting ready to cram into an RV, to set off for a romp in the woods. In this group you have your standard archetypes, the hero Curt (Chris Hemsworth), the naughty girl Jules (Anna Hutchison), the innocent Dana (Kristen Connolly), the mature young man Holden (Jesse Williams), and the pot head/comic Marty (Fran Kranz).
Along the way they make a pit stop at an abandoned gas station or so they think. An attendant startles one of the youth, as he begins to tell them a ghost story. After a while you start to notice something is askew here. The five vacationers move ever closer to their destination and toward something more sinister. Eventually you realize that the situation quickly escalates into a bloody war between dumb inexperienced youth and evil. Are these young adults’ victims of their bad decision making, or is a much weirder force at work here?
Knowing how much I scrutinize horror films, I felt this was one I can finally sink my teeth into. Although we were provided with the worse case scenarios, it didn’t just end with the deaths of these kids. You really didn’t see the second act coming. Hiding behind the usual story was the true cause of all that had transpired before. You weren’t just idly waiting for the next victim to be slaughtered. You didn’t just sit through a blood bath, although there is a fair amount of gore. Though the story wasn’t extremely intricate, you were still left puzzled. I kept asking myself, “How are they going to get out of this one?”
Sure I was startled many times, but being frightened wasn’t really the point anymore. This is what I’ve been waiting for and I enjoyed every moment of “The Cabin in the Woods.”