Directed by: Drew Goddard
Written by: Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard
Whenever I go into a movie, I try my best to maintain a healthy level of optimism. Regardless of how the commercials look, or the cast and crew involved, or how great or terrible the reviews are (though there are always exceptions), I give movies a clean slate and hope for the best.
That being said, I cannot say the same for any horror movies I see nowadays. What was once a proud genre with cinematic classics ranging from Dracula and Psycho to The Exorcist and The Evil Dead, now horror has become complacent with doling out with either the tired mess of boobs and slashers, the revolting and less-than-scary "torture porn" courtesy of films like Saw or Hostel, waves upon waves of remakes of classic horror films that don't come close to matching their predecessors' superiority, or the recent onslaught of shaky-cam "found footage" flicks that can somehow make back 100 times its budget despite being absolutely terrible.
It's this disheartening lack of originality and innovation that's made me cynical towards most, if not all, horror films in the last ten to fifteen years. That, and the fact that so many fright flicks take themselves so seriously. Part of the appeal of the right kind of horror films is the knowing, tongue-in-cheek humor that basically admits to how silly or over-the-top the material is, which is why recent movies like Drag Me To Hell or Shaun of the Dead are those rare exceptions when it comes to my distaste for the genre.
Thank goodness that director Drew Goddard and co-writer Joss Whedon apparently have the same attitude towards horror as me, and bring to us the long-delayed but well-worth-the-wait horror satire The Cabin in the Woods.
Five college students are on the way to a cabin in the woods to enjoy a weekend of fun. There's demure Dana (Kristen Connolly); soft-spoken academic Holden (Jesse Williams); jock Curt (Chris Hemsworth); his libidinous girlfriend Jules (Anna Hutchinson); and stoner Marty (Fran Kranz).
Little do the friends know that, from a far-off facility, they're being observed from every angle by mysterious technicians such as Richard Sitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Steve Hadley (Bradley Whitford).
During a game of Truth or Dare, the kids stumble upon a basement cellar, where they find a variety of strange objects, including a century-old diary. After Dana reads a certain line in Latin, the students experience a massive onslaught of terrifying occurrences, and do all they can to survive.
Shot in early 2009 but shelved after financier MGM filed for bankruptcy, Cabin's release date was pushed back over and over again until the film studio Lionsgate picked the film up. And what a relief, seeing as how Goddard (making his directorial debut) and his mentor/geek-god Whedon (best known for creating TV's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Firefly", and directing next month's superheropalooza The Avengers) have crafted one of the funniest and most subversive horror-comedies since Scream did it 16 years ago.
Now regular viewers of my blog (yes, all six or seven of you) have noticed that my summary of the film's plot wasn't as detailed as usual. But it's near impossible to give a far more thorough description when you're reviewing a film so chockablock with spoiler-tinged plot twists as this. I guess the best I can do is point out that you're going into one of the more meta-referential film experiences you've ever been witness to.
Nearly every single horror movie cliche, staple, and convention is deconstructed and turned on its head here, from the stock characters (horny co-eds, virginal female protagonists, etc.) to the very element that serves as the film's title (the set-up is practically making you believe you're heading into Evil Dead IV). But the filmmakers take it a step further by not only toying with the cliches in a wink-wink manner, but actually taking those critical observations and transmogrifying them into actual plot points in the film.
It also lets certain characters (again, not spoiling it by saying who) sit in as a proxy for the audience, and examines why horror movies have a near-ritualistic fascination with carving up promiscuous teens, or why those darn kids ALWAYS go into the spooky dungeons or cellars despite the obvious cues that they shouldn't. The movie's both a loving homage and one big "fuck you" to the horror movie tropes that we've all come to love and later become bored with.
It helps that Cabin is really funny, too. Whedon's always been a master of snarky dialogue, and he and Goddard are clearly privy to the fact that most of us are familiar with the predictable elements of the genre. As such, they craft the tension and scene structure as if to have us predict just when that jump scene or blood-spurt will come out. And as a result, we smile as we feel as though we're insiders, laughing while those around us who aren't smart to the filmmakers' tricks wonder why the hell we're making light of bloody carnage.
Even better is the fact that the actors portraying the students play it so straight (or at least as though they were in an actual, conventional horror pic). We've got the obligatory semi-virginal heroine played by Connolly; Williams as the nice guy bookworm who has the hots for her; Hutchinson's whorish party girl and a pre-Thor Hemsworth as her athletic boytoy; and the requisite stoner played by Kranz, who easily steals the show. They all lampoon their respective archetypes with hilarious precision. Meanwhile, Jenkins and Whitford are uproariously funny as the shady overseers who, despite observing the terrifying happenings befalling the kids, are laidback and even bet on the events with their co-workers.
It's a shame that it took so long for The Cabin in the Woods to arrive on the big screen. Horror movies that poke fun at their inherent ridiculousness have been few and far in between since the glory days of Sam Raimi or Wes Craven, but Goddard and Whedon have managed to craft a brilliant, deliciously funny, and blood-soaked gem of a film that revels in its cinematic iconoclasm. A fun, surprising treat for film nerds and neophytes alike, The Cabin in the Woods is simply killer, in every sense of the word.
Letter Grade: "A"
