Just when you thought you'd seen it all... you hadn't

Rating: 9/10 (12 October 2012)

"The Cabin in the Woods," directed by Drew Goddard (screenwriter of 2008's "Cloverfield") and co-written by himself and Joss Whedon ("Firefly"), is a crystal-clear example that you truly haven't seen it all from the horror genre. I'm sure we've all just about given up on horror movies these days, but "The Cabin in the Woods" is the proof we need to shake us out of our delusion.
"The Cabin in the Woods" is a delightful send-up of "dead teenager" movies, using the Cabin in the Woods set-up that's so popular in movies like "The Evil Dead" (1982), Eli Roth's "Cabin Fever" (2002), and even "I Spit on Your Grave" (1978); I'm actually quite certain there's more - OK, a lot more - but it's 11:00 at night and I can't quite think of horror movie names right now. It also throws in heavy elements of zombie movies and slasher movies for good measure. (Who said original horror movies are a lost art these days?)
The story follows five college students (Kristen Connolly as Cute Virgin Girl Dana, Chris Hemsworth as College Football Jock Curt, Fran Franz as Bleary-eyed Stoner/Paranoid Conspiracy Theorist Marty, Jesse Williams as Stalwart Nice Guy/Scholar Holden, and Anne Hutchison as the Slutty Dumb Blonde Jules) as they take a break at a remote Cabin in the Woods; note that they're all blatant horror movie stereotypes being lined up for an imminent slaughter. A night of bloodshed and terror ensues. In a parallel - yet brilliantly, brazenly inter-connected and constructed, and also equally important - plot-line featuring faceless bureaucrats, things quickly become a witty essay on Hollywood horror movie narratives. To divulge any further details, destroys the surprises in store for you.
It's amazing the way that "The Cabin in the Woods" cuts between its two parallel story lines; witnessing this in action, I savored expert classical craftsmanship on the part of both Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon and their equally talented young cast members and film crew. Both are alive & kicking, and one directly influences the actions of the other (this aspect of the picture is later flipped on its head late in the film). And did I mention that this is pretty funny, in addition to being occasionally gripping and scary?
"The Cabin in the Woods" is genuinely scary in an old-school fright-fest way. It's also funny in a uniquely self-aware, post-"Scream" fashion that doesn't threaten to drift into full-blown camp territory. Even though it still exists in the post-"Scream" void of self-knowing horror movies, the movie actually reminds me a lot more heavily of Sam Raimi's "Drag Me to Hell" (2009), which also went straight for scares/jump scenes with a sly sense of humor under-cutting the action. And "The Cabin in the Woods" does have some impressive scenes of gory violence featuring - what else? - dead teenagers.
"The Cabin in the Woods" is a unique breath of fresh air for a genre that definitely needed a huge breath of fresh air.
9/10