Fantastic twist to the horror genre, a bucket load of fun!!

Rating: 9/10 (16 September 2012)

I had heard very mixed opinions about Cabin In The Woods but fans like me always bank on Joss Whedon. He may not have directed the film but he clearly had a very heavy hand in the film because it reeks of Whedon and it rocks!! Cabin In The Woods takes the stereo typical often tired old horror genre and kicks it straight in the jewels. You could watch this film a hundred times and see something else...an homage to any number of horror films or little hidden easter eggs in the background of multiple scenes. You can easily find a little bit of every major horror film of the last twenty or more years in this movie. But it doesn't just spoof them and toss them aside, it weaves an intricate well told almost sci-fi story with solid performances, tongue in cheek humour, and a well made very old school ending and an INCREDIBLE evil villain cameo that made me cheer out loud (yes I'm that lame.) Is it a perfect movie? No. It did cram an awful lot into one movie and the old school ending may definitely come across as hokey to some but the movie is simply fun and thrilling and extremely entertaining.
When I first saw Chris Hemsworth in Thor I immediately thought he was a one note actor who would never really go beyond Thor/Avengers but I admit right now I was wrong. I've seen him now in this and Snow White and The Huntsman and it turns out he was great in both. In this film he plays the jock type teen (who isn't even close to being a teen) and he plays the role well. He spoofs the characters but still makes it serious enough. Kristen Connolly is our scream queen, the "virginal" pure girl who always survives. She plays the role perfectly. She is sweet and nice but toughens up when it comes down to it. Anna Hutchison is the "hot blonde" of the group. She doesn't last long against the killers but then she isn't supposed to either. She serves her purpose though and her and Hemsworth have good chemistry. Fran Kranz (a Whedon-ite formerly of Dollhouse) plays stoner Marty. He was probably my favourite character because he was clearly smarter than the average horror flick stoner and surprises you in the end. He has great on screen charisma too. Jesse Williams (who I enjoy a lot on Grey's Anatomy is just okay in the nice guy role. He has good chemistry with Connolly but he is very underused and background fodder when it comes down to it. And finally I very much enjoyed the performances by Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford. Their dialogue with each other is perfect and keeps the pace going and they have some of the best, funniest and most clever lines in the film. Of course you also have the big bad cameo at the end but I won't mention who that is...except I was thrilled.
This was director Drew Goddard's directorial debut and I don't mean to downplay the job he did but its very clear that Joss Whedon guided him a great deal. I don't know why he just didn't direct it himself. Either way it was very well directed and written by Goddard and Whedon together. Part of the film felt like an old school slasher flick like Friday the 13th but back when the series was in its stride, when it was truly excellent. Then you have a sci-fi feel to some of it, similar to that of the Resident Evil franchise, but you also have an original unique story that is done in its own way. Do yourself a favour horror fans and check this one out now!! 9/10