Without revealing too much, The Cabin in the Woods is a teenage horror flick with a difference. It follows the inevitable misadventures of five teenagers taking a weekend out to visit a spooky cabin in a picturesque but isolated spot (kids, eh! When will they learn?) All too soon the hijinks start to unravel and the fun really begins.
Joss Whedon walks a very fine line between the horror genre and the very best and most entertaining of the spoof genre. The result is a truly entertaining and clever black comedy that is witty and sharp. Whedon's fingerprints are all over it with an intelligent plot, charming characterisation and strong dialogue. This is Drew Goddard's first outing as a director but he does well, creating some really memorable moments.
But...
The ending stretches reality a little too far and harms the integrity of the movie and spoils the fun. It's slapdash and is perhaps the only point that Goddard's directorial inexperience shows. But perhaps the DVD release will have an alternate ending.
The Cabin in the Woods is a funny and entertaining horror-fantasy cross-over. As the body-count rises and the level of gore increases this is a movie that will appeal to fans of movies like Scream, Devil, and Final Destination. It may not achieve the mass appeal or success of those flicks at the box office, but it will definitely have a cult following simply for it's idiosyncrasy. And it's nice to find a movie that feels too short rather than too long.
The Cabin in the Woods is released in the UK on 1st April.
