Five friends go for a break at a remote cabin in the woods, where they get more than they bargained for. Together, they must discover the truth behind the cabin in the woods.
Review
Such an odd film. An 8.1 on IMDB (at the time of writing) is no mean feat and suggests a very good film is in the offing.
Yet the moment the film was finished I immediately turned to my spouse and declared that The Cabin In The Woods was one of the worst films I’d ever seen.
However this is the reason why I always leave writing reviews until after a week or so of seeing a film. First impressions can be misleading and when not thoroughly thought through can mislead those who read the reviews. So now I’ve had time to think about the movie, let it sink in, does my initial opinion still stand? Well, kind of.
For me it’s still a terrible film, but to describe it as one of the worst I’ve seen, well that’s just not true. I look back at what I’ve reviewed on the site previously and realise that despite its failings, it holds its own in the face of other lesser films. Just.
So what was my problem with the film? Well for me it just didn’t know what it wanted to be. It was a daring move to try and tackle numerous genres (comedy and horror being the two central themes) and bring a twist to a ‘played to death’ theme but it was all just too much. It got weighed down by its central premise and veered off in different directions without retaining a central core.
I’m not going to go into details about the film, as its main draw is the twist elements and to review the film in full would spoil it for many who I’m sure will enjoy the film. Let’s just say that it copies various elements of several other movie genres such as horror (Evil Dead, Hammer Horror classics), spoof (deliverance, every slasher movie ever made), Fantasy/Sci-Fi (Blade) and Thriller (My Little Eye). For me it gives nods to each of the movies and tries to bundle it all together in one package but in the end becomes one big mess. It doesn’t help that because of what the film is, it literally tells you what’s going to happen next and as such loses such a lot of its edge. Essentially there’s no suspense present.
It also didn’t help that I hated all the characters, from the teens who visit the cabin (all of them) to the guys in the …. Hang on I’ll stop there as that would give away a pretty big twist. I despised them all and I was baying for them to meet a grisly end.
And so to the ending.
I’ve read other reviews (all of which give the film a decent review) and everyone, bar me, seems to think that the end quarter is a triumph. A tour-de-force of gore, OTT action and cheesiness which really hits the spot. I personally thought that it was ridiculous, bordering on farce, and when the unicorn arrived (believe me this is the worst) I nearly got up and left the cinema it was that ludicrous.
The actual ending just summed up the film for me – Ridiculous, nonsensical and an insult to its audience. It brought nothing new to any of the genres it tries to mimic and it amazes me the sort of hype it continues to receive.
I know I’m in the minority and I’d love to hear what others thoughts are on this film. Maybe I just missed the point and someone may be able to educate me. Comments as always below.
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