The Cabin in the Woods

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  • The Cabin in the Woods

    Believe the hype.

    While it's not 100% perfect, this Joss Whedon-produced deconstruction of 80's horror is very clever and consistently entertaining...especially if you're jonesin' for some of that Evil Dead-type balance between horror and humor.

    I'd say don't read up on it too much, though. Half the fun is figuring out where it's heading. Which might be why it sat on the shelf for three years...not because of quality, but because the meta-aspect probably confused the suits when they got their screening.
    "Forget it, Jake. It's Hollywood."

    My YouTube channel.

  • #2
    Re: The Cabin in the Woods

    Saw it today.

    It was the most fun I've had in a theater in years.

    A total blast.

    I agree it's best to know as little as possible going into it. (For the first couple minutes I actually wondered if I'd wandered into the wrong theater.)

    Highly recommended.

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    • #3
      Re: The Cabin in the Woods

      Agreed! The only problem I had was the last 2 seconds. Well, more like disappointment, but it was a trivial issue.
      "We'd better get back, 'cause it'll be dark soon, and they mostly come at night... mostly." - Newt

      AlexThompsonWriter.com

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      • #4
        Re: The Cabin in the Woods

        i honestly cannot remember the last time i saw a horror movie in the theater, but your comments make it sound a little bit intriguing.

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        • #5
          Re: The Cabin in the Woods

          Originally posted by NikeeGoddess View Post
          i honestly cannot remember the last time i saw a horror movie in the theater, but your comments make it sound a little bit intriguing.
          Without giving away too much, this isn't a typical horror movie. This movie is hilarious. (I think hard-core horror fans might even be disappointed, if they're dull and stupid people; personally, I don't especially like horror movies, the last horror movie I saw in a theater was Scream, but I'm extremely glad I decided to see Cabin in the Woods.)

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          • #6
            Re: The Cabin in the Woods

            Originally posted by Signal30 View Post
            Believe the hype.

            While it's not 100% perfect, this Joss Whedon-produced deconstruction of 80's horror is very clever and consistently entertaining...especially if you're jonesin' for some of that Evil Dead-type balance between horror and humor.

            I'd say don't read up on it too much, though. Half the fun is figuring out where it's heading. Which might be why it sat on the shelf for three years...not because of quality, but because the meta-aspect probably confused the suits when they got their screening.
            Not reading any further. Some dirty spoiler monkey might ruin it.

            I was going to see Lockout next but I might bump this one up to next in line. I've gotta fit The Raid in somewhere too.
            Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue

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            • #7
              Re: The Cabin in the Woods

              Thought about checking this out, but is it really intense? Because I can't handle horror at the best of times...

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              • #8
                Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                And I'll cop...I really, really want one of those collapsible stainless steel coffee cup bongs. Really.

                Originally posted by JibJib View Post
                Thought about checking this out, but is it really intense? Because I can't handle horror at the best of times...
                Well, yeah. It gets pretty intense, but more in a cartoon-y way. MMV, but I'd say if you can handle The Evil Dead franchise, you should be okay.

                Originally posted by AlexApprobation View Post
                Agreed! The only problem I had was the last 2 seconds. Well, more like disappointment, but it was a trivial issue.
                I liked it. [SPOILER]: Basically, it riffed off the cynical ending of The Thing (so those two dudes are sitting there freezing to death...but a rescue party is gonna arrive some day and take the corpses back home and thaw them) and kicks it up a Lovecraftian notch. [END SPOILER].
                Last edited by Signal30; 04-16-2012, 12:20 PM.
                "Forget it, Jake. It's Hollywood."

                My YouTube channel.

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                • #9
                  Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                  Originally posted by JibJib View Post
                  Thought about checking this out, but is it really intense? Because I can't handle horror at the best of times...
                  This is not a horror film.

                  I saw it. It's was okay. Nothing special. Creative, but not special.

                  I'll sum it up by quoting a friend of mine...

                  I think another problem is that the "dumb movies" that Cabin is supposedly dogging, are pretty much as dated (if not more dated) than the whole meta horror thing. What was the last entry into the cabin in the woods sub-genre that wasn't a horror comedy? Nothing is coming to mind. I guess if this film is specifically aimed at the 30-40 year old demographic (which it isn't) they might appreciate the films subversive nature, but for the young (non movie buff) people that see this, will they even understand that the film is trying to be subversive? What's the point of making fun of something if everyone already thinks what your making fun of is a joke?

                  We've gotten to the point where the proverbial meta horror horse has been beaten into dust, but for some reason there are still people beating the ground where its corpse used to be. I mean this film is obviously influenced by the Evil Dead series, a series that lampooned itself twenty five years ago. I think its time that we found a new schtick.

                  If one truly wants to turn the horror genre on its head and change things up, simply making a genuinely good horror movie would be the best way to do it.
                  I admire this film for its creativity, but the complete lack of substance and insistence on spoofing a genre that has become nothing more than a spoof of itself keeps this from being anything more than a mildly entertaining B-movie that will be forgotten before its own blu-ray release.

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                  • #10
                    Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                    MILD SPOLIERS.

                    Wow - I agree with Bio!

                    I think the weird problem is that it's a satire of horror movies that were not very good in the first place. So, where you can still watch HALLOWEEN and it works, watching FRIDAY THE 13th now is more of a nostalgia thing. And most of the films CABIN satires were junky... and the good ones (EVIL DEAD ) were already funny (so you can't really make fun of them). That makes the first maybe 2/3rds of this film fun only in a nostalgic way. If you are a fan of these films (I am) you can spot all of the allusions and have a laugh at the cliches. But if you are *not* a fan of these films - it's like the worst horror film ever made. It's just one damned cliche after another!

                    That limits the audience to fans.

                    Non-fans who see it will *not* like it.

                    If you are a non-fan and can hang on until the last third - there is a twist (more on that in a moment) that makes it a fun rollercoaster even if you are not a fan. At least, I think it would work for non-fans.

                    I've tried to to drop any spoilers in here - but I think the film's mistake is that it spoils itself. That is, the end act 2 twist is *not* a twist at all. They tell you it's coming in the *opening scene*. Then they keep telling you that it's coming. There is a character in the film who suspects the twist - and I would have rather kept the twist a secret and had this character (and the others) figure it out on their own. That would have removed some of the jokes - but maybe made the film more enjoyable for the non-fans and it would have appealed to a larger audience. This is *not* dumbing it down, just a different choice in the way the story was revealed.

                    The audience I saw it with (Burbank) seemed to think it was stupid until the twist. But even after that was not exactly with the film. I think it's tough to do a film that is a deconstruction - because most people want to just see a movie. they don't want to see a movie that makes fun of the movie they wanted to see (unless it's a straight up parody).

                    What did George Kaufman say about satires?

                    - Bill
                    Free Script Tips:
                    http://www.scriptsecrets.net

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                    • #11
                      Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                      Originally posted by wcmartell View Post
                      Wow - I agree with Bio!
                      I hope so - I agree with you a lot!

                      I agree that it should have started out as a regular cabin in the woods story and built up from there. That would have added suspense and mystery and kept us engaged instead of watching everything matter-of-factly.

                      I bumped a post about Tucker & Dale vs Evil the other day. I recommend that film over this one because even though it's a comedy, it's less of a spoof than this is because it's actually about something and has a point. CITW is just exploitation, and not even in a fun grindhouse sort of way.

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                      • #12
                        Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                        Well, it's also one of those movies that just knowing that there's a twist is a spoiler. I agree that while it's not going to redefine the genre, but after absolute clueless shit like Zombieland it's more than a welcome change to have a movie that not only knows the basics of the genre it's having fun with, but seriously knows what makes it tick.
                        "Forget it, Jake. It's Hollywood."

                        My YouTube channel.

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                        • #13
                          Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                          Originally posted by Signal30 View Post
                          Well, it's also one of those movies that just knowing that there's a twist is a spoiler. I agree that while it's not going to redefine the genre, but after absolute clueless shit like Zombieland it's more than a welcome change to have a movie that not only knows the basics of the genre it's having fun with, but seriously knows what makes it tick.
                          I can't find enough ways to disagree with everything you just typed.

                          I know the basics of the genre, so I don't need a movie that gets its jollies from telling me what I already know.

                          Zombieland was great, but we need less self-aware "horror" and more actual, good, real horror films.

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                          • #14
                            Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                            Originally posted by Biohazard View Post
                            Zombieland was great, but we need less self-aware "horror" and more actual, good, real horror films.
                            This sentence does not add up.
                            "Forget it, Jake. It's Hollywood."

                            My YouTube channel.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: The Cabin in the Woods

                              Originally posted by Signal30 View Post
                              This sentence does not add up.
                              How about this one?

                              If one truly wants to turn the horror genre on its head and change things up, simply making a genuinely good horror movie would be the best way to do it.

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