With a shortage of original horror in recent years, many fans were looking forward to last week’s release of “Cabin in the Woods.” The film had a great team behind it, with Joss Whedon writing alongside Drew Goddard, who also directed the film. It had been pushed back a few years, due to MGM’s financial woes, and even managed to capitalize from a pre-Thor Chris Hemsworth being prominent in the cast.
“Cabin in the Woods” features five teenagers who travel out to a remote cabin to enjoy an entertaining weekend by the lake. Unfortunately, they unknowingly entered into a deadly game with a much larger purpose.
The film had to set a high bar to please Whedon’s countless “fanboys” across the globe, and unfortunately it did not reach that bar. Parts of “Cabin in the Woods” are ridiculously awesome, but for the most part, it fell short of its expectations.
On the positive side, the characters are very likeable, and it is rare to find a cast that makes you root for them instead of whoever is trying to lead them to their demise. The final act of the film is also one of the craziest sequences in film history and makes up for some of the film’s shortcomings in the earlier acts.
Fran Kranz stole the show with his character, Marty, and it will be interesting to see where his career leads him after his star-making turn in this film. Kristin Connolly also did a fantastic job as the female lead of the film, and it is hard to recall a horror film that had a more breathtaking star than Connolly.
On the negative side, the film is not the least bit scary. Every time it looks like a scare is imminent, the filmmakers made the decision to cut to a comedic scene, which completely relieves the film of its tension. Horror films need to put the heroes in situations that make them seem like they are isolated and alone in the world, and “Cabin in the Woods” fails in doing this.
It also appeared that the main purpose of the film was to turn the slasher subgenre upside down, and while it does that, it does not do so on the same scale of greatness that “Tucker and Dale vs. Evil” did just last year.
While “Cabin in the Woods” did not live up to its expectations, it is still a decent film that should be viewed by fans of any type of horror film. Of course, many reviewers and fans enjoyed the film, but it is definitely worth deciding for yourself. At the very least, it is an original idea that does not involve remaking a beloved horror classic.
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