The Cabin in the Woods
by Jerry Cavallaro
I have been looking forward to THE CABIN IN THE WOODS since I first heard about it over 3 years ago. Every delay it went through was like a direct slap in the face. I avoided almost all trailers / TV spots and refused to read any reviews so that I can go into the film completely fresh. The hype machine still kicked in when seemingly every press friend I had tweeted how amazing this film is. The final straw came when The Film Snob himself told me quite simply; CABIN IN THE WOODS was made for me. This flick could not possibly live up to my unreasonably high expectations, right? Wrong.
CABIN is a masterpiece of horror filmmaking that instantly climbs the ranks solidifying a spot for itself high up on my list of all-time favorite movies. It is profoundly funny, violent and sometimes both at the exact same time. Everything about the film is brilliantly executed. The characters, wardrobe, and set design are all spot-on. The dialogue is hilarious. The acting, cinematography and direction are perfect. From the moment the title abruptly jumped on the screen, I knew this was going to be something special. I don’t think I ever had as huge a grin on my face as I did the entire length of the film.
When the credits rolled, I wanted to immediately watch it again. I was completely blown away. Then I noticed the people behind me complaining how this was “the worst movie ever” while several others agreed. Were they even watching the same flick? Their big criticism was how certain characters and situations were exactly like other movies they had seen. Um, yes, that is the point. There are literally characters on screen discussing the cliches of the film and no, I do not mean in the same way SCREAM did it. The fact these people were complaining because it accomplished exactly what it set out to do says way more about the quality of the audience than the quality of the film.
If you go into CABIN expecting to watch 90 minutes of something you’ve never seen before, you may be disappointed. But I guarantee you’ve never seen it presented in this way. The flick is entirely original and incredibly inventive while also managing to throw in nearly every horror trope in the book. The genius of this is also what makes this film so damn hard to review without spoiling anything. And this is a film you want to go into as clean as possible. So stop reading this review. Stop reading all reviews. Go out to the theater and pay to see this movie. Maybe then Hollywood will get the message that we need more fun horror flicks like this!
