A jock, nerd, slut, stoner and virgin travel to a cabin for the weekend. They discover weird ancient relics in the basement below, and evil beings emerge from the darkness to kill them off one by one. This all too familiar plot takes a different turn as a self aware horror flick for fans of the genre.
These five cliché characters are established in typical fashion. The jock is with the slut, the stoner loves to smoke weed, and the virgin likes the nerd. But these five characters aren't acting like themselves. They are being watched and manipulated for some unknown agenda, and some of these teenagers are on the verge of discovering the real truth.
The Cabin in the Woods has many funny moments with the audience in mind. Why did the couple make the stupid decision to go off alone in the woods instead of going to their rooms? What kind of an idiot says we should split up to cover more ground when being hunted down? There is something truly artificial about these generic horror setups and this film addresses them tongue-in-cheek.
**(Spoilers in paragraph below!)**
This film has a playful subtext on the modern horror genre. Outside of the actual setting of the cabin, you have the office workers and executives behind the scenes attempting to deliver these deaths so the Ancients won't destroy the world. Metaphorically, these are movie producers and filmmakers attempting to create the same crap they have been for years, hoping it will please the audience and keep the genre alive. Maybe the horror formula and everyone supporting it need to be destroyed so that something new can come out of this tired genre.
The Cabin in the Woods is currently available for stream on Netflix.
Rated R for strong bloody horror violence and gore, language, drug use, and some sexuality/nudity
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