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The Cabin in the Woods

(No longer in theaters)

Rating: R — for strong bloody horror violence and gore, language, drug use and some sexuality/nudity
Director: Drew Goddard Cast: Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Jesse Williams, Chris Hemsworth, Fran Kranz
Running Time: 95 minutes
Reader Rating: Write a Review

Rate & Review

Genre

Horror, Suspense/Thriller

Producer

Joss Whedon

Distributor

Lionsgate Films

Release Date

Apr 13, 2012

Release Notes

Nationwide

Official Website

discoverthecabininthewoods.com

Review

It’s hard to write in an expansive way about Drew Goddard’s The Cabin in the Woods because the very premise is a spoiler. I will say that five attractive young people (a promiscuous blonde, a “good girl,” two hunks, and one stoner wise guy) go deep into the backwoods to frolic and drink and have sex and … die hideously? Sure looks that way, but what’s going on with the—? Why are all those corporate types, including Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford, sitting behind a battery of monitors and placing bets on—? If Scream was a meta-hack-’em-up, Cabin takes five giant steps back to reveal a wider canvas, gleefully jumbling together every kind of modern horror picture, paranoid-conspiracy thrillers, Matrix-style sci-fi, and a dollop of H. P. Lovecraft. Is it scary? Not especially. But there are enough gory surprises around every bend to keep you laughing/screaming/cringing. Probably Goddard and producer Joss Whedon were laughing even harder as they raided their mental warehouses for more tropes to travesty. The movie is fun—but any resemblance to what drew us to the genre in the first place is coincidental. — David Edelstein