The author Robert Scucci
| Published
Horror comedy has always been a subgenre that benefits from a healthy dose of self-awareness and meta-humor to drive its point home. With excessive violence, acknowledgment of common tropes, and use of brutal and comical violence, Cabin in the woods is the absolute king of horror comedies because it celebrates its inherent ridiculousness with unimaginable enthusiasm. Not only will you find yourself laughing in disbelief as you watch Cabin in the woodsafter that, you'll have trouble watching similar horror movie plots played out live because they're splattered so effectively.
Technicians
Cabin in the woods aggressively suggests a “man behind the curtain” as lab technicians Gary Stitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Steve Hadley (Bradley Whitford) frame its narrative. Discovering that they're about to start an annual ritual where five college students spend the weekend in an isolated cabin in the woods, Gary and Steve head to a massive underground laboratory to do what they do best: witness the violent death of stereotypical character archetypes. for a reason that has yet to be revealed.
At the time, the viewer was only told that a bunch of students were getting ready for a party, while the real party was already happening underground as Gary and Steve opened up a betting pool with the lives of their chosen victims.
Smashing dials and switches and preparing for the carnage to come, the technicians direct their subjects to the titular cabin so they can unleash a host of monsters, demons, and zombies to do their bidding.
Victims
Never shying away from the tried and true horror tropes we all know and love, Cabin in the woods introduces Dana (Kristen Connolly), Curt Vaughn (Chris Hemsworth), Gilles Louden (Anna Hutchison), Marty Mikalski (Fran Kranz) and Holden McCrea (Jess Williams).
Each character's personality embodies the classic horror movie victims you'd expect – Marty is a particularly talkative stoner who won't shut up about conspiracy theories, while Anna is known as the lascivious girl in the group.
Rounding out the group are Curt and Holden, who play on the same football team at university, and the meaner Dana.
Cabin
With the two stories above running concurrently, Cabin in the woods play as a group of puppets trying to survive the whims of their sadistic master back in an underground facility. From Mordecai The Harbinger's (Tim de Zarn) warnings about the cabin's violent past to Latin spells written in an ancient diary by the mysterious Patience Buckner (Jodelle Ferland) found in the cabin's basement, every interaction is carefully planned and forced through trapdoors, pheromones fogs and other overproduced bumps in the night that transform a carefree weekend getaway into your stereotypical in a slasher movie.
For example, when Curt suggests that the group stay together after a violent argument, he immediately changes his mind and suggests that the group split up to cover more ground as he walks past an air vent that emits a mist designed to lower his inhibitions.
Hilarious carnage of the highest order
Cabin piece inside Cabin in the woods is derivative by design, which is why this movie is so much fun to watch. On the one hand, you become emotionally involved as the five chosen victims navigate the treacherous forest and fight for their lives. But as soon as you're reminded that there's a cheering room full of technicians watching their every move and betting on the outcome, you want to drop $20 in favor of the virgin's survival because you want to believe that “the last girl” always comes out alive.
Cabin in the woods is unlike any other slasher movie you've seen before. While it borrows heavily from every classic slasher, it not only tries to reinvent the genre with its own self-awareness, but succeeds. If you are ready to experience the violent spectacle Cabin in the woodsyou can stream the title for free on Tubi as of this writing.
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