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The Cabin in the Woods
- Review Date: April 13, 2012
- R
- Genre: Horror
- 2012
Common Sense Media says
Clever but very bloody deconstruction of horror movies.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that The Cabin in the Woods is a very-self aware, sometimes tongue-in-cheek horror movie (like Scream or Tucker and Dale vs. Evil). It starts out as a typical "carload of teens goes to spend the weekend in the country" scary movie, but then it adds some sinister twists. Throughout the whole thing, you can expect tons of violence, gore, and blood, though it stops short of "torture porn" (a la the Saw and Hostel movies). Language is also very strong (including "f--k," "s--t," and more), as is sexuality -- there's one topless scene, plus heavy sexual banter and behavior. One teen is a regular pot smoker, and other teens -- as well as adults -- drink beer, tequila, and more. Writer Joss Whedon has legions of devoted fans, many of them teens, but The Cabin in the Woods is really too much for any but the most mature teens.
What's the story?
A group of college kids --including hunky Curt (Chris Hemsworth) -- piles into an RV and heads for a cabin in the woods for a fun, blow-out weekend of swimming, sex, drinking, and smoking pot. At the same time, a couple of scientist/engineer types (Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford) check into a control room and start monitoring the teens. After a while, the teens stumble upon a cellar full of strange objects. The virginal Dana (Kristen Connolly) begins reading from an old diary and apparently awakens a family of zombies. The teens begin to realize that something is amiss, but can they withstand the homicidal zombies long enough to find out?
Is it any good?
In THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, veteran writer Joss Whedon and first-time director Drew Goddard deconstruct the horror genre like never before. Their effort isn't unlike Scream or Tucker and Dale vs. Evil, but it's a great deal more spectacular. It begins very similarly to movies like The Evil Dead, Creature, and Shark Night, but before it grows stale, The Cabin in the Woods starts dropping hints that it's no ordinary horror movie. It keeps the mystery up until the final blow-out reel, where it probably gives away a bit too much. But by that time, it has wildly succeeded.
Goddard gets fun performances from the cast, especially Jenkins and Whitford, who chat playfully without disclosing too much vital information. The Cabin in the Woods also makes the most of its cross between horror and humor, between the dark, dank cabin and the white, clinical control room. Where the movie arguably falls short is in its scare factor; it's not particularly frightening, though it is very clever and very entertaining.
Explore, discuss, enjoy
Families can talk about what point The Cabin in the Woods is making. Is the message purely cynical and sinister, or does it have anything positive to say? Does it help to have seen a lot of horror movies in order to "get" this one?
Could the movie succeed without its extreme violence?
Is The Cabin in the Woods scary? Does it succeed as a horror movie, as well as a commentary on other horror movies?
Are any of these characters admirable in any way? Why or why not?
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Teen, 13 years old
April 13, 2012
AGE
Could have had the potential to be a lot scarier.......
Saw this yesterday on opening weekend.And I've got to say this pretty much killed my thinking of Lionsgate.First,it starts off slow,like a normal horror movie setup,then halfway in,it tries to be Friday the 13th,and when that dosent work it tries a few torture porn methods in the style of Saw movies then tries to be Laid To rest and finally ends in an Evil Dead conclusion.Theres a lot of graphic bloody violence but it's meant to be gratuitous and cheesy so it won't scare many viewers.I think next time,I'd be better off staying home and watching Evil Dead back to back.
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Adult
April 14, 2012
AGE
A Modern-Day Horror Masterpiece!
Five college kids go into the dark woods. Alone.
Horror happens. Blood gushes. Screams are heard.
You think you now the story?
THINK AGAIN!
To tell any more would ruin this wonderful experience for you.
Go see it. Especially if you enjoy the horror genre.
WARNING: There is A LOT of gore, bloodshed, drug use, and profanity, and also some sexuality/nudity. But I'm sure you've read Common Sense's review already.
Thanks for reading!
-The Movie Man
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Teen, 15 years old
April 19, 2012
AGE
A great film with an interesting twist.
The Cabin in the Woods is a funny, gruesome, clever horror movie which offers a great spin on the typical 'slasher' movie. Here's the deal: five teens go off on a vacation to the titular cabin in the woods. But here's the twist: whilst the teens are off vacationing, there are some other people, sitting in an office, watching the teens' every moves on screens. It appears that these 'experiments' have been going on all over the world, but they have all previously failed. But what exactly is it that has failed?
Like I said, the twist is great, but somewhat expected after the half-way point. However, despite the over-zealous violence (which is the point, I suppose), the story is well-told and rather excellent. And there's a special guest appearance in the last scene of the film... I was very excited in the cinema!
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Teen, 15 years old
April 21, 2012
AGE
awesome movie
first of all great movie!!!!!!!!!!!!! it's better than insidious,friday the 13 like the best horror movie out there. the sexe is not that bad we do see some boobs but like for 5 sec. it's not really scary but I have to warn you of the blood and gore the first half goes easy on the gore and blood althought we do see some blood a character is beheaded but the actually ending last 15 minute are really gory( not really gory but alllloooooooooooooootttttttttttttt of blood). the movie is better than ur regular teen going in the wood type of movie there's is more things like that but I am not giving u away anything. I don't like the part that 1 of the guy who smoke weed that makes him special, so I won't recommend kid under 14/15 to go see it becuz it might encorage younger people to do drugs. for once I believe that mpaa made the right rating because the blood and gore are way too much for the typicall pre-teen/young teen. and the drug abuse and what they say about it could make a better choice for 14-17 between
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Teen, 16 years old
April 21, 2012
AGE
gklbm
Bloody but Really good and clever movie mixes non-stop blood and Some likable charecters.
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Teen, 13 years old
May 6, 2012
AGE
Good!
The movie starts bout with two men talking about sexual intercourse with women and wives from each others neighborhood. A teen is seen in panties. Another teen is seen topless. A lot of blood and gore throughout the movie. Weed is used in many scenes of the movie. Language is used in only 3 scenes tops.
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Teen, 14 years old
April 27, 2012
AGE
Very smart teen movie
it is a very self-aware movie.
it asks you should we think these movies are normal? and should we relly be chearing for the killer?
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Kid, 12 years old
May 14, 2012
AGE
Funny, Exciting, Scary but Only For The Mature!
This movie involves a lot of blood splashes and scary monsters. The violence alone would give this movie an R rating however what really makes this movie inappropriate is the sexual involvement - not much but a woman's breasts are shown.
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Teen, 16 years old
May 13, 2012
AGE
Great
Your kids love this movie if they could understand it. They need to watch much worse(content wise) movies to really get full vaalue out of this comic masterpiece!
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Teen, 14 years old
May 8, 2012
AGE
Review
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| Topics: | monsters, ghosts, and vampires |
| Studio: | Lionsgate |
| Director: | Drew Goddard |
| Cast: | Bradley Whitford, Chris Hemsworth, Richard Jenkins |
| Genre: | Horror |
| Run time: | 95 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | April 13, 2012 |
| DVD release date: | September 18, 2012 |
| MPAA rating: | R |
| MPAA explanation: | strong bloody horror violence and gore, language, drug use and some sexuality/nudity |
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