I was looking for something comforting, I suppose, but at some point over the past few weeks my paradigm for comfort viewing seems to have shifted dramatically. All I've actually been wanting to watch lately is horror - classy horror, admittedly, but normally I have to nerve myself to dip into the genre even when it's something I've seen before and know I'll enjoy. Suddenly, though, my life seems to be descending into chaos and I'm watching Joss Whedon's The Cabin in the Woods like a six-year-old princess fetishist watches Frozen.
There's a reason for this: it's very good indeed. However, it's also so tightly-plotted that to discuss anything but the bare bones of the story and characters is to risk ruining somebody's experience of the film, and after the fun I've had I'm just not prepared to do that. Here's a clue, though: that bit before the pre-credits sequence where the studio and production company do their little animated logos? Yeah, that's your spoiler right there, if you look carefully enough.
Anyhow, there is indeed a cabin, and there are some woods. There's a lake, too, and a bunch of photogenic college students keen to get there despite the disturbingly sinister gas station attendant who strongly implies that this may not be a good idea.
It's a classic setup - the exact same setup, in fact, that begins Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil, and the two films do share a certain amount of common ground. Tucker and Dale is, however, at heart, a simple moral fable about prejudice, and none the worse for it. The Cabin in the Woods, on the other hand, well, spoilers forbid, of course, but it's an entirely different kettle of entrails.
The good
I know I haven't always been terribly complimentary about Joss Whedon in the past. I may have implied that the majority of his oeuvre consists of identikit teen models spouting identikit pithy dialogue under exasperated but loving supervision of respected middle-aged genre actors.In all honesty, I still stand by all of this, but The Cabin in the Woods is Whedon doing what he knows and does best. The really important thing, though, is that he's doing it to the best of his considerable ability, and the result is a tricksy, mischievous tale of the unexpected that will surely rank amidst the best horror films of this century.
There's this myth that truly great films and truly watchable films belong in two completely separate Venn sets, and never the twain shall meet. It's nonsense, of course, but it's pernicious nonsense - so pernicious, in fact, that I often have to remind myself that beliefs like these aren't just offensively anti-intellectual but also, frankly, complete and utter bollocks.
Don't believe me? The Cabin in the Woods is the proof. It's a perfectly-crafted puzzle box in reverse of a story, as seemingly disparate elements slowly slot into place and a mystery is formed and solved in only an hour and a half. Whedon and his co-writer Drew Goddard clearly had the time of their lives with this one, and were kind enough to bring us along for the ride. Sure, the acting's fine and the cinematography is better, and the mystery respected middle-aged genre actor is an absolute doozie, but yeah, this is all about the storytelling, which offers a glorious mix of shocks and laughs and proves beyond all question that yes, smart is definitely also cool.
The bad
None really, but if you're not a huge fan of the horror genre (or of Whedon's usual schtick) then this may not be the film for you.The verdict
I've watched The Cabin in the Woods twice in three weeks now, and I'm still not sure how a film whose impact depends so heavily on surprise can stand up so well to repeat viewing. It's probably a measure of the film's sheer quality, I think - it's a work of art, yes, but also a work of craft. Highly recommended.I
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