8/29/2012

"Building the horror, piece by piece"

Title: The cabin in the woods
Year: 2012
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Director: Drew Goddard
Writer: Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard
Runtime: 95min
Cast: Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford, Brian White
Produc.: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Mutant Enemy, United Artist
Budget: $30 million approx.

In The cabin in the woods, five friends who gather for a weekend, end up finding much more than the typical dangers of the dark woods.
The audiences were asking out loud, to be listened to. Were asking to stop making so many remakes and sequels, fed up of always seeing the same story. But the thing is that in Hollywood, box office successes are intended to be exploited till the end. Studios prefer to hire people willing to negotiate a good contract, to resume an idea, already, more than squeezed, and to say no to more rewarding projects, though less lucrative.
The audiences were claiming, given the lack of originality. And just as The Avengers (2012) would come to save us from the invasion, Joss Whedon itself (who adapted Stan Lee) would come to give us a break, in this other gender.
Co-written by him and Drew Goddard, and directed by Goddard, its release had been scheduled for February 5, 2010. However, given MGM´s intention of converting it to 3D, plus its subsequent announcement of being in bankruptcy, the wait would last. Finally, both Whedon and Goddard would oppose to the conversion and after serious financial problems, the distribution of the film would be sold to the Lions Gates Entertainment Corporation, for reaching the theatres on April 13, 2012.
Regarding Whedon, he would give a brief definition of what horror films meant to him, and of that, in which, according to him, they had ended up becoming. He would also say which was the goal been chased by him and his co-writer, and that he would partly describe as: "...an attempt to revitalize the genre ...", etc., etc.
I got to read a lot of reviews that highlighted how good it was the result, in addition to, how twisted. A friend told me, via Facebook, that beyond its originality and above all, the fuss was due to its so much postponed premiere. He also told to me to see it anyway, but beeing patient, because at first, it was going to seem silly.
I ended up realizing that, certainly, it was not for such a fuss.
Dana (Kristen Connolly), Curt (Chris Hemsworth), Jules (Anna Hutchison), Marty (Fran Kranz) and Holden (Jesse Williams) are the typical characters, unmistakable in any horror movie, concerning youth and isolated cabins. Can be recalled, for example, the classic The evil dead (1981) or Cabin Fever (2009).
Furthermore, Sitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Hadley (Bradley Whitford) are two technicians from a company, whose job is to simultaneously handle several scenarios, by which are constantly wreaking havoc in different parts of the world and in different ways.
What comes up next in the cabin, is a summation of clichés, that although may be boring, it is understood that it does not pursues the same goals we already know. There is in fact, a twist.
We have the romantic young couple (Curt and Jules), which has the ridiculous idea of having sex in the woods, instead of in a bed, as rational people. They end up getting in trouble, as it is evident. Or we have the group´s clown (Marty), who, being on his own, at the moment of his attack, manages to save himself.
Such situations are unleashed when the kids have the bright idea of going down the basement (formerly opened by Sitterson), were they should never have walked in. Down there, Dana takes a book with latin texts, and although Marty warns her, afraid, she reads a spell that awakens the zombies.
Once we have seen a bit of struggle, blood and death, one would want such patience to have its reward, but the movie twists are not anywhere near the remarkable and surprising that, as a spectator, one was expecting.
I do have to say, however, that what has occured to Whedon is that so much suffering was due to theoretically necessary procedures and for the sake of most of us. Something that later, it is made clear.
We can not deny that it is something new. Except that, once the first big surprise has been revealed, and when three of the kids have already died, the film relies on showing us a massacre, with monsters sweeping against the sadistic responsibles of the project, in what seems, was a punishment. Thus, it has gone from the originality to the easy joke.
It plays a lot with the, obviously fictional concept, of that we were young fools, always inclined to open the doors of fear (ie to get into where we are not called), and where, according to Sitterson, that has to be paid. That is actually an excuse to justify himself.
Already, when much of the argument has been revealed and the intrigue has given way to the hunting, is that the film begins to lose its charm, only sustained by the final appearance of the head of the company.
But in short, is this, ultimately, a great movie? I sincerely, doubt it. More, I tend to think that, with its script they have been able to tell a different story, exploiting the most common codes in a way never seen before. Although, with a conclusion that was for me, too far fetched. I doubt that to be enough as to say this is the best in horror movies of this year. It is, indeed, entertaining, different and to pass the time.

My rating: 6/10


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