Go see Cabin in the Woods right now! *No more spoiler tags! You've had weeks! Discuss openly!

Probably wasn't even blood.

Just saw this last night. I generally hate horror movies (modern ones at least), but my man-crush for Whedon was too strong.

Loved this movie, so entertaining.

Care to elaborate, Elysium? I'm curious how a viewer not into modern horror reads a film like this when it's built on a foundation of tropes from modern horror.

Either way, glad you enjoyed it. It's a fun 'un.

I guess I understand many of the tropes academically, and I watched enough horror as a teenager (early Friday the 13ths, Nightmare on Elm Street up through around Hellraiser) that it's not lost on me. The last horror movie I enjoyed was probably Scream, and frankly for most of the same reasons. But over the last 20 years or so, the genre has gone to places I don't care for, and likely I'm different too. So, there's enough recognizable to CitW to make sense -- though I'm sure lots of things flew right past me -- but mostly I just really enjoyed the pacing and writing. To be honest, I spent most of the movie waiting to get back into the story of what was happening in the facility than in the cabin itself, I identified with that a lot more.

Sounds like you didn't miss much at all! My interest was focused more on the control facility too, for what it's worth. Thanks for sharing.

Agree with most of that post. Loved 80s horror even as a kid. Scream was an homage to all those great movies. Then the 2000s have been mostly filled with gore porn, not horror. And some crappy remakes. Freddy vs Jason was fun. Not much else good in the genre for a decade or so though.

I can't wait to buy this on blu-ray.

Stele wrote:

Agree with most of that post. Loved 80s horror even as a kid. Scream was an homage to all those great movies. Then the 2000s have been mostly filled with gore porn, not horror. And some crappy remakes. Freddy vs Jason was fun. Not much else good in the genre for a decade or so though.

Really now? Of the the top of my head I can think of: The Descent, Let the Right One In, The Orphanage, [REC], Julias Eyes, Heartless, Kill List, Black Death, Triangle, Drag Me To Hell, Orphan, House of the Devil, Slither, Wolf Creek, 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later.

Yes, Hostel and Saw are very stupid gore fests, but I really can't stand this fingerwagging attitude about how depraved all horror movies are these days. It's ignorant moralizing.

Your post is filled with awesome, ALG.

Seriously, while the popular crap that shows up in theaters year after year and gets the biggest advertising budget is the gore-porn schlock that doesn't appeal to me, there's actually been some really solid horror filmmaking happening over the last ten years. Actual good-quality (sometimes genuinely classic-style) horror.

Really now? Of the the top of my head I can think of: The Descent, Let the Right One In, The Orphanage, [REC], Julias Eyes, Heartless, Kill List, Black Death, Triangle, Drag Me To Hell, Orphan, House of the Devil, Slither, Wolf Creek, 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later.

Yes, Hostel and Saw are very stupid gore fests, but I really can't stand this fingerwagging attitude about how depraved all horror movies are these days. It's ignorant moralizing.

Let the Right One In was brilliant -- I'd forgotten about that one. Never saw the American remake. The rest of those, at least the ones I'm familiar with, don't really do anything for me. I did say that it was possible that my distaste had as much to do with me as anything else, but I'm not one to search out horror, so from my point of view the genre from a popular perspective looks like a lot of crap, because that's all I really get exposed to. I can see how that would be frustrating to a horror fan.

That's also not counting the horror movies being mad ein other countries. In Their Sleep is a great French horror movie, and their are plenty of Asian horror films as well, though I can't remember/google their titles at the moment.

Also, one of my buddies saw Cabin in the Woods the other night, his reactions were priceless. Forcefield > Motorcycle was his favorite part.

Squee9 wrote:

...plenty of Asian horror films as well...

I'm not a huge fan of horror, but to this day Ringu exists as the only horror movie to freak me out as an adult. There's just enough weirdness (to my eyes) in Asian films to leave me feeling unanchored, which accentuates the discomfort/horror they're trying to provide.

CitW was awesome, however, even if I didn't get most of the tropes.

Elysium wrote:
Really now? Of the the top of my head I can think of: The Descent, Let the Right One In, The Orphanage, [REC], Julias Eyes, Heartless, Kill List, Black Death, Triangle, Drag Me To Hell, Orphan, House of the Devil, Slither, Wolf Creek, 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later.

Yes, Hostel and Saw are very stupid gore fests, but I really can't stand this fingerwagging attitude about how depraved all horror movies are these days. It's ignorant moralizing.

Let the Right One In was brilliant -- I'd forgotten about that one. Never saw the American remake. The rest of those, at least the ones I'm familiar with, don't really do anything for me. I did say that it was possible that my distaste had as much to do with me as anything else, but I'm not one to search out horror, so from my point of view the genre from a popular perspective looks like a lot of crap, because that's all I really get exposed to. I can see how that would be frustrating to a horror fan.

I'll assume you've at least seen 28 Days Later and probably 28 Weeks Later. So, I'd recommend [REC]. Or Trekkies. That movie is terrifying.

Elysium wrote:
Really now? Of the the top of my head I can think of: The Descent, Let the Right One In, The Orphanage, [REC], Julias Eyes, Heartless, Kill List, Black Death, Triangle, Drag Me To Hell, Orphan, House of the Devil, Slither, Wolf Creek, 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later.

Yes, Hostel and Saw are very stupid gore fests, but I really can't stand this fingerwagging attitude about how depraved all horror movies are these days. It's ignorant moralizing.

Let the Right One In was brilliant -- I'd forgotten about that one. Never saw the American remake. The rest of those, at least the ones I'm familiar with, don't really do anything for me. I did say that it was possible that my distaste had as much to do with me as anything else, but I'm not one to search out horror, so from my point of view the genre from a popular perspective looks like a lot of crap, because that's all I really get exposed to. I can see how that would be frustrating to a horror fan.

I wouldn't call myself a horror fan as such, more of a movie fan who likes horror. Even so, it's pretty much exactly like watching people who don't play video games go on and on about how depraved and corrupt they are.

Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of crap in the genre because the barrier of entry is so low, but that also makes a good entry point for smart, motivated filmmakers too.

Anyway, I'd really recommend The Orphanage if you haven't seen it. It's a superbly crafted, melancholy and really rather touching ghost story. And if you've seen it and it left you cold, I don't know what to do with you.

Squee9 wrote:

That's also not counting the horror movies being mad ein other countries. In Their Sleep is a great French horror movie, and their are plenty of Asian horror films as well, though I can't remember/google their titles at the moment.

Also, one of my buddies saw Cabin in the Woods the other night, his reactions were priceless. Forcefield > Motorcycle was his favorite part.

Well, I did put three Spanish movies, one Swedish, one Australian and bunch of British ones on there...but yeah, I did leave a bunch of Asian ones out of it. Nearly every crappy American remake was remade for a reason.

I'm also not a big horror fan but really loved Drag Me to Hell. Just another data point in the discussion.

My favorite recent additions to the horror genre have been Asian horror flicks like Ringu (the original not the so-so American remake) and Shutter. Having lived in Japan, I can say traditional Japanese ghost stories are really horrific, and I like the modern take-offs of those tales.

That being said, I'm still a big fan of the Stephen King and John Carpenter horror movies of the 1980s, Vincent Price movies of the late 60s-early 70s, and of course Hitchcock. Oh, and the Exorcist. I guess the good news is horror on TV has never IMHO been better - American Horror Story and the Walking Dead to just name two outstanding and creepy series.

On another note, I'm bummed. It's not on Netflix yet.

You all forgot the scariest of them all: Audition.

Alien Love Gardener wrote:

Well, I did put three Spanish movies, one Swedish, one Australian and bunch of British ones on there...but yeah, I did leave a bunch of Asian ones out of it. Nearly every crappy American remake was remade for a reason.

Well, I guess that IS counting the films made in other countries. I needed an excuse to bust out In Their Sleep.

My college housemates and I used to cuddle up and watch the freakiest movies we could find, usually subbed. Martyrs (torture gore), Antichrist (creepy husband/wife violence), Paranormal Activity (freaky), and In Their Sleep (killing and chasing) are all examples of films that really got to me.

Although, A Serbian Film still takes the cake.

To get this on topic, those housemates include all the people who enjoyed Cabin in the Woods.

Paleocon wrote:

You all forgot the scariest of them all: Audition.

OMG you're right!! That was the creepiest non-supernatural horror flick.

I also forgot one of my favorite foreign horror flicks The Devil's Backbone by Guillermo Del Toro. Awesome ghost story set during the Spanish Civil War.

Paleocon wrote:

You all forgot the scariest of them all: Audition.

I think the whole "torture porn" genre of movies may qualify as horror but they don't count as "scary" movies.

They horrify you in the classic sense of being unsettled and disturbed by what you are seeing. A torture porn movie like Hostel isn't going to keep you up at night worrying about a boogie man in your closet though. A torture porn movie isn't going to make you frightened to walk down a dark, empty hallway in your house on your way to bed.

They are horrifying but not scary. (to me)

Audition was horrifying. Ringu was scary. They both fall under the overarcing "horror" genre but I think they occupy very different sub-genres.

Just my 2 cents.

I went to the Best Buy near me to get this on Tuesday but they were sold out of BluRay. Got it last night at another one. During both visits someone asked me if I liked it and if it was good enough to buy. I told both of them, "It's so good I wanted to watch it again as soon as it was over." The first guy was convinced and would have bought it right then, but again, no BluRay. The second person was the cashier and she said she thought it was stupid. Oh well. 1 for 2.

McChuck wrote:

The first guy was convinced and would have bought it right then, but again, no BluRay. The second person was the cashier and she said she thought it was stupid. Oh well. 1 for 2.

Yep, I've encountered the same thing. As it is with alot of stuff that Joss Whedon is involved in, people's take on them seem to swing to either extremes; best thing ever or total crapfest (See Dollhouse, Buffy, Angel and even Firefly). In the theater I was at during my showing of Cabin in the Woods, I noticed two different groups actually get up and walk out, one of which was in the row infront of me, so I suspect that my constant laughter might have been a factor.

Came across a friend of a friend on Facebook crapping all over the movie. She considers herself a horror movie connoisseur and called CitW the "worse horror movie in all her years" and that it, if it actually became popular, might "destroy the horror movie genre as we know and love it".

But that's the whole point.

It's a movie billed as slasher-horror but when slasher-horror fans watch it, the actual real horror they see is the metaphorical and even existential potshots that the movie makes about the horror "tropes" that they seem to like and watch these movies for. That the standard slasher-horror movie audience is no better than the Cult running the show or even the Ancients that they are trying to keep a pleased. Some would take this as unique and thoughtful and would think about the message. Others, like my friend's friend, would feel like they are being insulted and talked down to.

I can't understand how anyone can see that third act and not be like "this movie is f*cking amazing and I am a better human for its existence".

Rented this from Amazon streaming Wednesday night. Thursday at work, I watched it again in a tiny browser window (very relaxed atmosphere here) and I have to say it's just a stellar piece of horror / action / comedy. The last act was so crazy I had to pause the movie several times just to be able to absorb all that was going on. Really happy to see this come along and mush up the horror landscape.

I was lazy and ordered the blu-ray from Amazon while renting the streaming version. I really wanted my roommate to see it last night.

Director of Cabin in the Woods just did an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit.

Thanks, that was fun read.

My wife and I just saw this last night and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Looking forward to finally reading through the thread.

Wow, thanks to that AMA and the rest of this thread, my productivity for the week is now officially shot, as I've fallen down the rabbit hole of reading theories about this movie. Just discovered the wiki! SQUEE!!!

Also, I wanted to watch it over again as soon as it was done, too. My wife probably won't go for it though.

Watched this with my BIL this evening. Thought it was pretty fun. We both enjoyed the comedy and felt that it was definitely something we hadn't seen before, which was refreshing. Needed more boobs if you ask me.