Movie Review: THE CABIN IN THE WOODS

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS
USA 2012
Directed by Drew Goddard
Written by Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon
Starring Kristen Connolly, Fran Kranz, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Chris Hemsworth


SYNOPSIS:  It's THE EVIL DEAD meets THE TRUMAN SHOW!  As a group of nubile teen monster-bait head unsuspectingly into the woods towards their certain doom, a pair of office drones (Jenkins and Whitford) keep track of the proceedings via high-tech video surveillance, while simultaneously moving all of the horrific set-pieces into position.  Who these men work for, and what their motivation is, is initially shrouded in mystery.


THOUGHTS:  Kudos to the marketing department for holding back from revealing the final act in the trailers, which contains most of the film's best moments (which I similarly won't spoil here).  While they would undoubtedly have drawn in a much bigger audience, they would have also ruined the delightful surprise.  


On the Metatextual Horror Seriousness Scale, this lands somewhere between the genuine thrills of SCREAM and the outright parody of YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN.  Let's say it's kissing cousins with SHAUN OF THE DEAD.  But while SHAUN raised the stakes to balance out the comedy, similar attempts feel hollow here.  I had compassion for Shaun and Co, but the CABIN gang never escape the cliches that they are meant to embody, and thus I never felt invested in their plight (or, consequently, scared).

It is, however, bloody, fun, and clever, and that goes a good distance with me.  Similar to other "twist" films like THE GAME, I'm not sure that it would hold up on multiple viewings, but if you're a fan of teensploitation horror flicks, or just love to make fun of them, there's a good time to be had here.  A great date movie for somewhat anarchic couples.


RATING:  6 (LIKE)