MOVIE OF THE WEEK: (4/13/2012) CABIN IN THE WOODS
"We heard a noise ... That can only mean that good things are about to happen, right? RIGHT?!" Curt (Chris Hemsworth), Holden (Jesse Williams), Jules (Anna Hutchison), Marty (Fran Kranz) and Dana (Kristen Connolly) share a tense moment together in a scene from director Drew Goddard's new horror/comedy THE CABIN IN THE WOODS. Credit: Diyah Pera © 2012 Lionsgate Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
KEY CAST MEMBERS: Kristen Connolly, Fran Kranz, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Chris Hemsworth, Jesse Williams, Anna Hutchison, Brian White, Amy Acker ... And someone else I don't want to ruin the surprise of telling you who it is!
WRITER(S): Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard
DIRECTOR: Drew Goddard
WEB SITE: www.discoverthecabininthewoods.com
THE PLOT: Filmed long before the world came to know one of its stars as the Norse god of thunder, Thor, The Cabin in the Woods focuses on a group of five college students heading to, as the title indicates, a weekend getaway in the great outdoors. There's the athlete, Curt (Chris Hemsworth), his free-spirited girlfriend Jules (Anna Hutchison), their burnout friend Marty (Fran Kranz) and Dana (Kristen Connolly), the virginal good-girl who recently got her heart broken. Also joining the fray is Holden (Jesse Williams), a clean cut, scholarly guy who knows that Curt and Jules want him to become Dana's new guy and feels just as awkward about it as she does.
Unbeknownst to the group, however, is that just below them in a bunker is a massive team of, oh, let's just call them technicians since they're all dressed like Best Buy Geek Squad workers led by Sitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Hadley (Bradley Whitford). You see, Sitterson and Hadley are actively putting the group in harm's way and are determined to make sure them that all (or nearly all of them) perish - and not quickly, either. But why are they and the rest of the people in the bunker below them doing this?
Because if they don't die, the consequences might affect us all more than you ever could imagine ...
THE TAKE: First things first, The Cabin in the Woods is a horror/comedy, not a straight up horror movie. So if you come expecting a Texas Chainsaw Massacre-style affair, you're at the wrong movie. Likewise, the acting in the film is about what you would expect for a film of this genre and the story has more than a few plots holes that if you think about them in detail could ruin the experience for you altogether. Lastly, the film was co-written and produced by director Drew Goddard and upcoming Avengers director/Buffy the Vampire Slayer legend Joss Whedon, so if you're not familiar with some of his past work, this film might be a weird place to start.
All that being said, The Cabin in the Woods is an interesting movie ... Whether or not people think it's a good interesting movie, however, is going to vary from person to person.
Cabin in the Woods is like an enigma wrapped in a crystal ball of ... OK, that's a cop out. The movie basically pokes fun at the horror movie genre while at the same time working within the conventions of a horror movie ... And yet still twisting some of the basic conventions of said movie to come up with its own unique take on "a bunch of teens/college kids go into the woods" genre. This is why the film is interesting to watch ... But given that it's not really scary and is more silly than funny for the first hour or so, it has the potential to be one of the most polarizing experiences you'll have at the movies this spring.
Did I like it? Not really. Did I dislike it? Not really. Am I glad I saw it? Yes. Do I need to see it again? No. - And that's kind of where I'm at with the film as a whole. I can clearly see reasons why some people might end up with a stronger opinion on one side of the good/bad debate as a whole ... But I am more confident that they are likely to end up straddling the middle of the road.
Unbeknownst to the group, however, is that just below them in a bunker is a massive team of, oh, let's just call them technicians since they're all dressed like Best Buy Geek Squad workers led by Sitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Hadley (Bradley Whitford). You see, Sitterson and Hadley are actively putting the group in harm's way and are determined to make sure them that all (or nearly all of them) perish - and not quickly, either. But why are they and the rest of the people in the bunker below them doing this?
Because if they don't die, the consequences might affect us all more than you ever could imagine ...
THE TAKE: First things first, The Cabin in the Woods is a horror/comedy, not a straight up horror movie. So if you come expecting a Texas Chainsaw Massacre-style affair, you're at the wrong movie. Likewise, the acting in the film is about what you would expect for a film of this genre and the story has more than a few plots holes that if you think about them in detail could ruin the experience for you altogether. Lastly, the film was co-written and produced by director Drew Goddard and upcoming Avengers director/Buffy the Vampire Slayer legend Joss Whedon, so if you're not familiar with some of his past work, this film might be a weird place to start.
All that being said, The Cabin in the Woods is an interesting movie ... Whether or not people think it's a good interesting movie, however, is going to vary from person to person.
Cabin in the Woods is like an enigma wrapped in a crystal ball of ... OK, that's a cop out. The movie basically pokes fun at the horror movie genre while at the same time working within the conventions of a horror movie ... And yet still twisting some of the basic conventions of said movie to come up with its own unique take on "a bunch of teens/college kids go into the woods" genre. This is why the film is interesting to watch ... But given that it's not really scary and is more silly than funny for the first hour or so, it has the potential to be one of the most polarizing experiences you'll have at the movies this spring.
Did I like it? Not really. Did I dislike it? Not really. Am I glad I saw it? Yes. Do I need to see it again? No. - And that's kind of where I'm at with the film as a whole. I can clearly see reasons why some people might end up with a stronger opinion on one side of the good/bad debate as a whole ... But I am more confident that they are likely to end up straddling the middle of the road.
PARTING SHOT: The Cabin in the Woods is a film that aspires to be something ... Whether or not it reaches its destination, however, may depend on what you wish it was versus what you ultimately think you really saw.
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