The Cabin In The Woods
Starring: Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchinson, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins
Director: Drew Goddard
Rating: 2/5
The Cabin In The Woods is a project that has been circulating for quite some time as it was filmed back in 2009, before Chris Hemsworth shot to fame as Thor in the marvel movies.
But the weekend saw the movie finally hit the big screen and for a film that I was looking forward to seeing it came as a major disappointment.
Five friends go for a break at a remote cabin in the woods, where they get more than they bargained for. Together, they must discover the truth behind the cabin in the woods.
Ok the first half of the movie I quite enjoyed as it jumped from events in the cabin to Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford's characters who were manipulating events around the five friends.
And that worked really well as you felt like the decisions that the guys in the cabin were not their own and they were being changed and manipulated for a bigger reason.
But the movie is undone by it's ambition and the reason that the five in cabin have to die is just so over the top and ridiculous that it spoils the movie.
Yes Drew Goddard and producer Joss Whedon have to be applauded for trying to do something a little different, and the outcome certainly is that, but it just didn't work for me.
One of the major things that I did like about The Cabin In The Woods though is it was not a torture porn movie that we have been inundated with in recent years.
Yes there is bloody violence but there is something of an old school feel to it that worked really well - and there are a few genuine scares in there as well.
Another strong point of the film is it's humour, mainly delivered by Fran Kranz and the high as a kite Marty. There are as arguably more laughs than scares but that comes as a real breathe of fresh air - most movies in this genre are just concerned with hacking people to death as quickly as possible.
I can see how Goddard and Whedon were trying to push the boat out and do something a little different; and to a certain extent that is exactly what they have done as this is a movie that really does have you thinking from start to finish.
The cast to their best with what is thrown at them but it's the performances of Jenkins and Whitford that really stand out.
Their characters use humour to deal with the horrors that they see in their work; betting on which creature will be sent to the cabin to kill those inside is a perfect example.
Yes the movie keeps you guessing as to what the outcome of the movie will be but it is so over the top when you finally get there that it is a major disappointment - however it is great to see them poking fun at this genre.
The Cabin In The Woods is out now
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw