Cabin in the Woods (2012)
Written By: Karla Cortes
Edited By: Grave Reviews Staff
Film Information
Director: Drew Goddard
Producers: Joss Whedon
Screenwriter: Drew Goddard, Joss Whedon
Date Released: April 13, 2012
Cast:
Kristen Conolly as Dana
Chris Hemsworth as Curt
Anna Hutchison as Jules
Fran Kranz as Marty
Jesse Williams as Holden
Richard Jenkins as Sitterson
Bradley Whitford as Hadley
Sigourney Weaver
Brian White as Truman
Amy Acker as Lin
Tim DeZarn as Mordecai
Rating = 3/5 Graves
***May contain some spoilers***
Synopsis
Cabin in the Woods (2012) is a comedy horror film that pokes fun at the archetypes involved in typical horror movies while incorporating clever ways of killing off its characters. Five American college students, Holden (Jesse Willimas), Dana (Kristen Conolly), Curt (Chris Hemsworth), Jules (Anna Hutchison), and Marty (Fran Kranz), decide to spend a weekend in what seems to be an abandoned cabin in the middle of the woods for a fun retreat. Little do they know that the cabin is a stage for terrifying monsters that are triggered to attack once an object within the house is manipulated or touched by one of its residents. The cabin is controlled by an underground laboratory of scientists and engineers that are conducting some sort of ceremony which includes killing off each individual in a specific order. The five college students have to fight their way to survival not only against these monsters but also what lies ahead after they discover the truth behind the cabin. All while being intoxicated with mind-altering drugs and hindered from being able to reach for help to escape.
Gore Factor
Cabin in the Woods (2012) would be considered more of a teen-scream/teen slasher film by Graves. Although there are a few scenes that depict gruesome ways of dying i.e. decapitation by zombies, crashing into force fields, and getting stabbed by yet another zombie, there isn’t much gore to be seen throughout the movie. The goriest scene within the movie would have to be when Dana and Marty trigger the “purge” button which unleashes every monster in the lab and absolutely slaughters hundreds of staff members.
The Grave Review
Although Cabin in the Woods (2012) would not be considered a must-see film within the horror community, it is one that entertains and receives a few chuckles. The film is supposed to be corny and, essentially, a comedy with some sort of mystery to it. Goddard even said that the opening scene where Sitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Hadley (Bradley Whitford) are discussing plans with the ritual was supposed to confuse audiences by making them feel as though they had sat down for the wrong movie. It’s all about poking fun at not only the audience but at the set characteristics within horror movies. Even when the director explains the ritual, she says how the American ritual involves the sacrifice of five slasher film archetypes which are the athlete, the fool, the whore, the scholar, and the virgin. To emphasize the comedy aspect, Goddard would throw in things that would make the viewer laugh if noticed such as the giant cat in one of the elevators and that exactly 69 people died in the movie. Cabin in the Woods deserves respect in that the concept in itself is unique. The scenes that got most praise were when Dana and Marty discover the monsters within the lab, each incredibly different and unique, and when the “purge” happens where all of those monsters are unleashed and they show their terrifying abilities. Overall, Cabin in the Woods is a fun, entertaining horror/comedy to watch when you don’t want to or have the time to fully invest in a film.
For the foregoing reasons, Grave Reviews gives Cabin in the Woods (2012) three graves out of five graves.
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