COUNTDOWN TO HALLOWEEN: DAY 27-“THE CABIN IN THE WOODS”

In honor of the witching season, we’ll profile a new Halloween-centric title every day throughout the month of October.

WHY THE HELL DID THIS MOVIE SIT ON A SHELF FOR TWO YEARS?!

Article by Adam Mast

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS (R)-2012

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS is a hard film to talk about because there’s almost no way to tap dance around spoilers. Still, for those of you have yet to experience it, I’ll do my best to set things up without giving away this movie’s wonderfully creative secrets. The less you know going in, the more you’re likely to enjoy THE CABIN IN THE WOODS.

Suffice it to say, this film from co-writer/director Drew Goddard (screenwriter of CLOVERFIELD and THE MARTIAN) and co-writer Joss Whedon (writer/director of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER and THE AVENGERS) has a lot more going on in it then the straight forward title would have you believe. At a surface level, this creative, game changing genre piece sounds positively stock; An athlete (Chris Hemsworth–pre-Thor), a slut (Anna Hutchison), a virgin (Kristen Connolly), a pot head (Fran Kranz), and an intellectual (Jesse Williams) take a break from the rigors of college and head out on a weekend long excursion to a remote cabin in the woods. Once there, all hell breaks loose. The thing is–and I’ll tread lightly here—when the shit hits the fan in THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, it’s not in the way you might be expecting.

If you’re not a lover of the horror genre, then THE CABIN IN THE WOODS probably isn’t for you. If you’re a fanboy, however (like me), and you have a pure love for this particular genre, then you’re in for a treat of epic (and ambitious) proportions.

Goddard and Whedon have done so much more than create a loving homage to  the genre, here.  This is also a deconstruction. What starts off as a standard exercise in horror quickly jumps the tracks, and what’s so entertaining about this movie is that it doesn’t present its bigger picture as some sort of monumental plot twist. From the get go, Goddard and Whedon let viewers know that  there’s something larger at play in this movie and that’s one of its many joys.

Is THE CABIN IN THE WOODS a jolt per second? No. It has its fair share of scares, but it’s more off the rails cool then all out scary. But, seriously! I’ve seen this movie several times now and I’m all giddy inside just thinking about it.

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS has become something of a cult treasure since opening in 2012 and it still blows my mind that the film sat on the shelf for two years before finally making its theatrical bow. Big time props to Lionsgate for coming to its rescue.

COUNTDOWN TO HALLOWEEN

October 26th-“Blood-O-Ween”–Click Here
October 25th-“Horror-Fest/Guerilla 2015” Recap–Click Here
October 24th-“Jaws”– Click Here
October 23rd-“Frailty”– Click Here
October 22nd- “Psycho” – Click Here
October 21st-“Killer Klowns From Outer Space”– Click Here
October 20th- “Horrorfest 2015” – Click Here
October 19th- “Hocus Pocus” – Click Here
October 18th-“The Exorcist”– Click Here
October 17th-“Prince of Darkness”– Click Here
October 16th- “The Omen” – Click Here
October 15th-“Dawn of the Dead”– Click Here
October 14th- Student Bodies”–Click Here
October 13th-“Habit”–Click Here
October 12th- “The Twilight Zone” – Click Here
October 11th- “Creepshow” – Click Here
October 10th-“Shaun of the Dead“-Click Here
October 9th-“Invasion of the Body Snatchers”– Click Here
October 8th-“The Final Girls”–Click Here
October 7th-“Something Wicked This Way Comes”–Click Here
October 6th- “We Are Still Here”–Click Here
October 5th-“Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn”–Click Here
October 4th- “Phantom of the Paradise“-Click Here
October 3rd-“Poltergeist“-Click Here
October 2nd-“The Babadook“-Click Here
October 1st-“John Carpenter’s The Thing“-Click Here

About Author

Adam Mast

Adam Mast has been a lifelong film enthusiast dating back to age 6 when his parents took him to see a little movie called JAWS at a drive-in theater in Northern California. This would lead him to several writing stints for various publications and outlets. Mast would also have a hand in several film projects of various shapes and sizes. In 2014, Mast would join forces with colleague John Pugh to create Cinemast.net as a means discuss film from a fan and analytical perspective. Together, Mast and Pugh would also create the 501 (C)(3) nonprofit, Film and Media Alliance of Southern Utah (FMASU) in 2017. FMASU’s mission is to encourage, inspire and educate filmmaking talent and to preserve film history. Adam currently resides in southern Utah with his amazing wife, Tonja, and their four wonderful children.

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