The Cabin in the Woods

This is going to be a short review. 


Not because I am pressed on time or tired or anything like that, but because I can tell you almost nothing about The Cabin in the Woods without completely ruining it. Im not sure if you, as my audience, have been following the reviews for this one, but they are surprisingly good. So maybe this is a really well-made and scary horror film? 


Think again. Well at least about the horror film part. But then again...it is a horror film. 


The movie comes from the extremely creative mind of nerd-God, Joss Whedon (who will be directing the highly anticipated Avengers film thats due out in a couple weeks). Whedon co-wrote and produced the film and his touch definitely shines through...let's just say that s**t gets crazy.


To give you a plot synopsis would be pointless because I can only tell you about a few details, but here is the basic layout: a bunch of teenage kids plan a camping trip where they will be staying at a cabin in the woods. They arrive at said cabin after an eerie encounter with a gas station clerk and then the usual horror movie scenario plays out. Or does it? And that is all I will say about the plot. And trust me when I say that the more you know about this movie, the less you will enjoy it. 

The Cabin has some surprises...

With regards to the actual movie and all the film-critiquing stuff, it is good. I actually really enjoyed the actors and actresses, especially Kristen Connolly (the red-head in the picture above). Not only is she gorgeous, she is good in her role and you can tell she is having fun with it. The movie had some genuine scares, although dont expect a Paranormal Activity-level of scares here. In addition, the special effects were pretty good, all things considered (once again, I cant give too much away) although some are pretty bad too. The one thing I did notice though, and it bugged me for some reason, was the sound editing. There were a couple times where the sound effects they were using sounded unnatural, like they were taken out of a PowerPoint animation suite or something. 

Not sure why he didnt just turn into Thor...

And there you have it. That's my review on The Cabin in the Woods. I told you it was going to be short, but really that is all I can tell you about the movie with out completely destroying the entire reason behind it. Does it have twists? Pshhhh. This movie is like a certain 60's dance craze it has so many twists. If you think you have it figured out right now I dont know how to express how wrong you are. If you think you have it figured out 10 minutes into the movie, I also dont know how to express how wrong you still are. To make a long and mysterious story short: The Cabin in the Woods doesn't flip the horror genre on its head. It takes it, makes sweet love to it, spits in its face, kisses it gently one more time, gives it some Ambien, forces it to dream about every possible nightmare, b**ch slaps it back awake, and then denies the whole thing ever happened. 

Pros:

• Such a fun movie to watch the first time around. I was so intrigued I thought I was watching a long lost episode of LOST
• Very smart. Which after you see it, you may disagree with, but it really is. The way it carries itself is near-genius
• Not phenomenal acting, but I've seen much worse in a horror film. Some great comedic timing though...oops I've said too much
• Speaking of funny, there are some truly hilarious scenes. But don't think this is a spoof. Because it's not...or is it?

Cons:

• I believe that it would be far less entertaining the second time around. One of those scenarios where you know what happens so it takes away from the guessing
• Some special effects are awesome, and some are pretty goofy looking
• I noticed the weird sound editing and it bothered me. But honestly, not that big of a deal

Rath's Review Score: 8.5/10

Wait...what the...?!