The Cabin in the Woods (DVD REVIEW)
The Cabin in the Woods
DVD
Review by Kam Williams
Twists
Aplenty in Harrowing, Haunted House Horror Flick
At first blush, The Cabin in the
Woods reads like your run-of-the-mill slasher flick. After all, it revolves
around unsuspecting teenagers isolated at a secluded setting who suddenly find
themselves stalked by a homicidal maniac. Furthermore, at the picture’s point
of departure, we’re introduced to five, naïve college kids embarking on a
weekend getaway by Winnebago to a lakefront cottage located so far from
civilization that it has no cell phone reception and can’t be tracked by GPS
either.
Such a break off the grid is just
what the doctor ordered for the overstressed quintet assembled by Curt (Chris Hemsworth), a jock who’s been blessed with free use of a
cabin by a long-lost cousin. Each of the classmates invited to join him
represents a readily-identifiable horror film archetype. There’s Jules the
blonde bimbo (Anna Hutchinson); Marty the wasted stoner (Fran Kranz); Dana the
innocent virgin (Kristen Connelly); and Holden the straight-A student (Jesse
Williams).
En
route, the motley crew
blissfully ignores the ominous warning to turn
around while they still have a chance issued by a creepy local yokel (Tim De
Zarn) familiar with the grisly history of the estate where they’re headed. And
it isn’t long after their arrival that evil forces residing at the haunted
house start picking them off one-by-one.
That
is where the similarity to the stock scary movie plot begins to unravel in this
genre-bending adventure marking the auspicious directorial debut of Drew
Goddard. For, our ill-fated heroes have no idea that their ensuing struggle for
survival is a high-tech ordeal being very-carefully orchestrated from an
underground bunker at the whim of a couple of jaded government bureaucrats
(Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford) with an army of techno-wizards.
It’s
impossible to discuss the storyline further without spoiling an abundance of
surprising supernatural developments, but suffice to say that waiting to be
unleashed are a host of bloodthirsty ghouls and goblins capable of killing in
endlessly-creative, if gruesome fashion. Overall, this hair-raising roller
coaster ride keeps you on edge for the duration, although its frustrating game
frequently feels unfairly rigged in favor of the sadistic puppeteers over the
intrepid protagonists you’re so futilely rooting for.
While
this howl-inducing splatter-flick definitely deserves its R rating given the
incessant gore, it nevertheless remains highly recommended for fright fans
interested in a more cerebral brand of bloodletting.
Excellent
(4 stars)
Rated R for profanity, drug use, sexuality, nudity and graphic violence.
Running time: 95
minutes
Distributor:
Lionsgate Home Entertainment
2-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack Extras: Commentary with the director
and scriptwriter; We Are Not Who We Are: Making The Cabin in the Woods; An Army
of Nightmares: Makeup & Animatronic F/X; Primal Terror: Visual F/X; The
Secret Secret Stash: Marty’s Stash; Hi, My Name Is Josh and I’ll be Your Guide;
Wondercon Q&A; It’s Not What You Think; and more.
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