One of the most regrettable things about the movie industry’s long, slow slide into creative oblivion (see “The Three Stooges” and say that’s not true) has been the death of the horror film.
Scratch that, the death of the good horror film. ]
Oh, there are plenty of “scary” movies that get released nowadays. Most feature a happy-go-lucky couple who move into a house and immediately run into ghostly apparitions and spiritual shenanigans. And don’t forget the camerawork that causes more vertigo than fear.
The fright film genre needed a kick in the pants. It needed a hero. It needed “Cabin in the Woods.”
In the lead up to the release of the film, which was co-written and produced by Joss Whedon, many critics compared it to Wes Craven’s meta-magnum opus “Scream,” a horror movie that was self-aware. “Scream” openly challenged the paradigms of the genre and, in doing so, created a new kind of movie experience.
“Cabin in the Woods” is, in many ways, a continuation of this same idea with a few notable twists. The film begins with the most classic setup possible when five friends — a jock, a beautiful blond extrovert, an even more beautiful brunette introvert, a burnout and a bookworm — all decide to go out to the wilderness for a weekend of partying. Along the way they run into a crusty old redneck who owns a run-down gas station, and warns them about the shady past of the old place up the road. Their cellphones won’t work. There’s no electricity. They are completely isolated from the outside world.
How fitting that such a genre-bending film would begin in the most cliché way possible.
It would be impossible to explain the genius of this film without spoiling it, but suffice to say that in true Whedon style, there’s far more going on than just the typical story of college kids getting slashed to death in the forest.
“Cabin in the Woods” features everything you would expect from a Whedon film. It’s hilarious, and genuinely so. The characters, though purposefully archetypal, are relatable and distinguishable. The dialogue is natural, the settings atmospheric. In essence, it is the closest thing to a perfect scary movie to come along in quite a while, and it manages to be scary at the same time as it is cerebral and comedic.
Bottom line, if you are at all a fan of Whedon or the genre, then you should go see this movie. Then again, if you are a fan of Whedon, you were probably already planning to.
Watch the official trailer via Youtube:
