I finally have an opportunity to introduce Nerdsync to any of you reading this. Nerdsync Productions is, for now, a blog that I have started with a fellow CBM guy like yours truly. Out of respect for ComicBookMovie.com however, I did not wish to plug our blog here for no reason. This is why I am sharing this review with you here on CBM. My friend, who at the moment doesn't have a registered account here, will simply go by his internet name: TheAceConvict.
AceConvict has some interesting views about "Cabin in the Woods", which in my opinion, was a good prelude to Whedon's work. Here in this review, he lays out his thoughts on the film.
So I just got done watching The Cabin in the Woods for the first and second time today and holy crap it was awesome! I usually don’t like horror movies (because of my completely rational fear of serial killers), but I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. It was such a refreshing idea on the horror genre of movies that it got me thinking back to every horror movie I’ve seen and wondering if it all stemmed from this.
I think it goes without saying that I love everything Joss Whedon gets involved in. This movie is no exception, and is the main reason I watched it in the first place. I especially enjoyed the movie because I had not seen any previews, trailers, or reviews about it. I didn’t have any idea what to expect. This is definitely the way to go with this movie. That scene about twelve minutes in when the bird hits the force field made me sit up in my seat and shout “What? WHAT?!”
Okay, time to get really spoilery…
The basis of the movie is that there is this company that houses every scary thing imaginable. They need to please these gods that once ruled the earth by sacrificing people so that these gods will remain underground. But they can’t just kill people, they have to make them suffer. The way they accomplish this is by luring at least five people, portraying the typical scary movie stereotypes to a cabin in the woods (hence the title) where they essentially let them choose how they die. There is a whole basement full of artifacts (where my Warehouse 13 people at!) that bring on a different threat depending on which one you activate first. At least four of the five people have to die for the gods to be pleased as the virgin’s death is optional, so long as it comes last.
When they discover that this whole thing is being controlled by “puppeteers,” they infiltrate the base of operations and let loose all the monsters. This is absolutely my favorite part of the movie. Clowns, werewolves, giant snakes, and zombies start tearing everyone to shreds.
[Side note]
Why the heck would they not create some sort of fail safe that would kill or at least incapacitate all the monsters in case of this exact situation. At least add a crap ton of safe rooms around the building so everyone isn’t completely screwed. I mean, you made a code name for it, you had to have known that there was the possibility of the situation actually happening. That’s another thing. Why would they make a button that releases all the monsters into the building at once without any way to stop them? In what scenario is that a good thing? But I digress.
[End side note]
As I was watching the movie for the second time, I did start to notice some Easter eggs amongst all the monsters. While there was obviously a Witch, Boomer, and Tank from the Left 4 Dead video game series, I was more interested in finding the rumored Reaver from one of the greatest shows ever made and other Joss Whedon property, Firefly.
May I also add how much I love that Joss Whedon reuses a lot of actors from his past projects. It was one thing to see Enver Gjokaj (Victor from Dollhouse) taking a small role in The Avengers, but another thing to see Amy Acker and Fran Kranz (Whiskey and Topher Brink respectively, also from Dollhouse) having pivotal roles in this film. Obviously, there are many more examples of this, that’s a post for another time.
The Cabin in the Woods definitely overflows with creativity. The idea that horror movies all basically come from this one organization is a unique idea that I openly welcomed. I don’t know if I would suggest this movie to lovers of the horror genre as it’s not so much scary as it is gory. But I would highly recommend this movie to anyone who just loves a good story with a cool twist.
Again, I wish to reiterate that it is not my intention to pimp CBM for ANYTHING. Not for fame, or sake of laziness. I do believe however that we can find some honest movie fans here that wouldn't mind checking out our blog, our Facebook page, and who wish to discuss everything considered "nerdy". Be one of the first ones to take part! I, Fartman, will definitely cite ComicBookMovie as a huge help to our success.
On Behalf of Nerdsync,
Thank you for your time.
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