Movie Review: Cabin in the Woods – My Geek Cup Runeth Over

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Recently,I went and saw the highly anticipated horror flick, Cabin in the Woods. From writer Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly, Cabin in the Woods presents itself as any ordinary scary movie; five incredibly attractive individuals escape to some remote cabin in the woods for a weekend of communing with nature and drunken debauchery. The gang of pretty people unknowingly tampers with the forces of darkness and unleashes a small legion of hillbilly zombies – No Big Deal. The group attempts to fend off and escape from the undead legion but the gang soon discovers they are merely pawns in some larger sadistic game of survival. A government agency, charged with protecting the world from the ancient gods, must ensure the downfall of our intrepid protagonists, in order to keep the world safe.

Now, I might be a little biased, because I am a Joss Whedon fanatic – believe me when I say that Buffy  revolutionized my adolescent gay existence – but Cabin in the Woods is freaking amazing. It is not your traditional horror film. If individuals are looking to go see some crappy-ass, grade F scary movie where sexy, scantily clad college students, flail about as they make futile attempts to escape some serial killer, then don’t go see this movie. Cabin in the Woods is a ground-breaking production, full of surprising twists and an ending that is unpredictably beautiful. The film is a comedic thriller that is both suspenseful and hilarious, as the writers of the movie poke fun at not only themselves, but at the horror genre as a whole.  As of late, scary movies have been boring, dumb, or just painfully awful. Most lack a story or a plot of any kind and rely on some fake-ass CGI monster to pop out of total darkness to scare you – ooooooh that’s so scary, I totally didn’t see that coming.

The film is not necessarily terrifying although there are a few poignant moments of terror. What is horrifying is the movie’s social commentary about our desensitization to violence and humanity’s constant pursuit for survival.  I think audiences will appreciate the intricate complexity and profoundness of the movie – unless of course it causes their brains to hurt from over-thinking. While in the theater, a number of high schoolers, with blank vacant stares on their faces, audibly asked “what hell is going” more than once during the course of the film. If you are not use the clever wit of the one Joss Whedon, the subtle subtext of the film might be lost on you. I give this film four stars out of five; expand your horizons, go out on a limb, and see this film.