[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
Could someone tell me if this just a rip off of Evil Dead? I couldn’t tell from the previews and am debating whether or not to go see it tonight.[/quote]
It references Evil Dead enough that it might just sabotage the proposed remake, but it’s far from a rip-off. The story explores ‘why’ the cliched group of horror movie victims (jock, virgin, dumb blonde, nerd, stoner) end up in that situation in the first place.
It’s sort of like Scream, but Cabin casts its net further than just slasher movies (there’s a shout out to J-horror, for example).
It’s definitey NOT derivative. That’s really all I can say. [/quote]
[quote]Dr.Matt581 wrote:
Could someone tell me if this just a rip off of Evil Dead? I couldn’t tell from the previews and am debating whether or not to go see it tonight.[/quote]
It references Evil Dead enough that it might just sabotage the proposed remake, but it’s far from a rip-off. The story explores ‘why’ the cliched group of horror movie victims (jock, virgin, dumb blonde, nerd, stoner) end up in that situation in the first place.
It’s sort of like Scream, but Cabin casts its net further than just slasher movies (there’s a shout out to J-horror, for example).
It’s definitey NOT derivative. That’s really all I can say. [/quote]
Okay, I think I can justify watching it now.
[/quote]
Yes. If you’re well-versed in horror, you’ll appreciate the subtle (sometimes not-so-much) homages to movies of before, but it does also do a great job of totally flipping off all those movies at the same time. Good writing.
One thing that you didn’t seem to talk about was the entire film was an allegory for horror audiences. The ancient gods were us, the viewers, who demanded to be more and more entertained by the “rituals.” They explain that the old days you could just tie a girl to stone and sacrifice her. But the “gods” now demanded to be entertained in bigger and better ways. The killers came from the nightmares of their people (so the Japanese faced something out of “Ring” or “Ju-on,” while the US dealt with something out of “Friday the 13th.”). Sigourney Weaver’s character explains that the lesser demons were captured by humanity and used for the gods’ amusement in the rituals. So if you look at all the horror creatures boxed up in their cubes, it represents all of the films they are talking about (the razor-head guy=Hellraiser’s Pinhead, etc.). The two control technicians were the Producers, controlling everything except the storyline, which they let write itself (as the material usually does). Sigourney Weaver’s character is even credited as “The Director.” When the Fool lets the ancient gods destroy humanity at the end, it essentially is telling the horror genre that it needs to start anew with fresh blood. The giant hand crashes down on the audience itself. I read Joss Whedon was quoted as calling the film “a loving hate letter to the horror genre.”
Saw it on opening night and absolutely loved it. It struck me the same way Scream did when I was 15. A whole new look on an old story, lotta laughs, a few jumps, well acted and really well done. If you like horror flicks you gotta check it out.
Good to hear that others liked it and enjoyed it. I don’t know one person who hasn’t enjoyed it yet, except for an idiot I know who has probably seen every Stathem movie in-theatre. So, 'nuff said.[/quote]
Couple of annoying goons behind me made a point of chatting loudly and putting on a false nasal laugh when the gore started flying. That’s usually a sign of fear or discomfort (horror noobs). Rest of the audience had a blast with a high interest level, lots of genuine laughs and plenty of people telling the idiots to STFU and stop ruining the movie for everyone else.[/quote]
That’s why I pay extra for the Luxury seats, better class of people and I don’t have to sit near the humans who talk, play on their phones or whatever. I guess if one is paying an extra $5.00 a seat one is their to actually watch the movie[/quote]
I’ve never heard of “luxury seats” in a theatre. That’s gotta be an east coast thing. Are you in a separate room or something?
Good to hear that others liked it and enjoyed it. I don’t know one person who hasn’t enjoyed it yet, except for an idiot I know who has probably seen every Stathem movie in-theatre. So, 'nuff said.[/quote]
Couple of annoying goons behind me made a point of chatting loudly and putting on a false nasal laugh when the gore started flying. That’s usually a sign of fear or discomfort (horror noobs). Rest of the audience had a blast with a high interest level, lots of genuine laughs and plenty of people telling the idiots to STFU and stop ruining the movie for everyone else.[/quote]
That’s why I pay extra for the Luxury seats, better class of people and I don’t have to sit near the humans who talk, play on their phones or whatever. I guess if one is paying an extra $5.00 a seat one is their to actually watch the movie[/quote]
I’ve never heard of “luxury seats” in a theatre. That’s gotta be an east coast thing. Are you in a separate room or something?[/quote]
Some places offer ‘premier’ seats which just means you’ll pay extra to sit at the back and further away from the screen.
True luxury seats exist where you sit at the back on a closed-off balcony, with leather couches instead of conventional seating and you get unlimited drinks/ nachos. Costs upwards of $25 a pop (standard screening). The only perk I see from these is that you’re so far back that nobody can fire popcorn at the back of your head.
Good to hear that others liked it and enjoyed it. I don’t know one person who hasn’t enjoyed it yet, except for an idiot I know who has probably seen every Stathem movie in-theatre. So, 'nuff said.[/quote]
Couple of annoying goons behind me made a point of chatting loudly and putting on a false nasal laugh when the gore started flying. That’s usually a sign of fear or discomfort (horror noobs). Rest of the audience had a blast with a high interest level, lots of genuine laughs and plenty of people telling the idiots to STFU and stop ruining the movie for everyone else.[/quote]
That’s why I pay extra for the Luxury seats, better class of people and I don’t have to sit near the humans who talk, play on their phones or whatever. I guess if one is paying an extra $5.00 a seat one is their to actually watch the movie[/quote]
I’ve never heard of “luxury seats” in a theatre. That’s gotta be an east coast thing. Are you in a separate room or something?[/quote]
Some places offer ‘premier’ seats which just means you’ll pay extra to sit at the back and further away from the screen.
True luxury seats exist where you sit at the back on a closed-off balcony, with leather couches instead of conventional seating and you get unlimited drinks/ nachos. Costs upwards of $25 a pop (standard screening). The only perk I see from these is that you’re so far back that nobody can fire popcorn at the back of your head. [/quote]
That’s what we have near me, also you can’t see the riff raff playing with their phones, and a watier serves you food and beverages
Good to hear that others liked it and enjoyed it. I don’t know one person who hasn’t enjoyed it yet, except for an idiot I know who has probably seen every Stathem movie in-theatre. So, 'nuff said.[/quote]
Couple of annoying goons behind me made a point of chatting loudly and putting on a false nasal laugh when the gore started flying. That’s usually a sign of fear or discomfort (horror noobs). Rest of the audience had a blast with a high interest level, lots of genuine laughs and plenty of people telling the idiots to STFU and stop ruining the movie for everyone else.[/quote]
That’s why I pay extra for the Luxury seats, better class of people and I don’t have to sit near the humans who talk, play on their phones or whatever. I guess if one is paying an extra $5.00 a seat one is their to actually watch the movie[/quote]
I’ve never heard of “luxury seats” in a theatre. That’s gotta be an east coast thing. Are you in a separate room or something?[/quote]
Some places offer ‘premier’ seats which just means you’ll pay extra to sit at the back and further away from the screen.
True luxury seats exist where you sit at the back on a closed-off balcony, with leather couches instead of conventional seating and you get unlimited drinks/ nachos. Costs upwards of $25 a pop (standard screening). The only perk I see from these is that you’re so far back that nobody can fire popcorn at the back of your head. [/quote]
25 a pop. That is nothing.
These days that is regular price plus 2 medium drinks for 2 people. In NYC I use to go on the duece (42nd street) and see double feature films for 5 bucks. Seen 5 deadly Venoms and Dawn of the Dead that way. But it was always filled with teens yelling and stuff. But if something came out that you wanted to just get into and enjoy without the noise you went beyone 50th street and go during a time when most of the crowd are middle aged adults. That is how I seen Back to the future.
[quote]pgtips wrote:
Just got back from watching it.
My opinion was “MEH” - it’s worth a watch, but I wouldn’t buy the DVD or even watch it again.
[/quote]
What were your expectations when going in? Straight up Horror Movie or Evil Dead type movie?[/quote]
I might drop a little SPOILER so don’t read if you haven’t seen.
I was expecting your average horror with a group of stereotype college kids who go to the woods (or any other potentially creepy place) and get messed up by monsters - There was plenty of that.
What made it bearable for me was trying to guess who the funny controller people were and wtf they were up to.
I read that it was supposed to turn the horror genre upside down, but to me it came accross as more of a darkly comic spoof rather than a serious attemp to change a stale genre.
[quote]roybot wrote:
I didn’t view it as trying to change or reinvigorate the genre: the entire movie is about tearing it down and starting again.[/quote]
Is that not the same thing though?
If they were looking to tear the genre down and start anew, they should have went for all out eerie psychological tension all the way through rather than keeping your average slasher and adding an interesting little twist.
The thing about horror films for me is that once the blood, gore and scares start coming, I’m not freaked out anymore… As soon as the cheap frights come in my fight or flight mode turns on and I’m no longer freaked out.
My imagination can scare me alot more than any CGI monster or shocking chopping people up scene can.
Seemingly innocent sounds, eerie locations a build up of tension - all has me scared to shit, then, when the scare comes, I’m just like meh, at least I know what it is and where it is, would I fight or run? - for me survival mode does not = freaked out mode.
I find myself far more disturbed when the tension drops, and things go back to normal. The unkown threat still there but not as strong, only to come back again, but never revealing itself. Always leaving it to the imagination.
[quote]roybot wrote:
I didn’t view it as trying to change or reinvigorate the genre: the entire movie is about tearing it down and starting again.[/quote]
Is that not the same thing though?
If they were looking to tear the genre down and start anew, they should have went for all out eerie psychological tension all the way through rather than keeping your average slasher and adding an interesting little twist.
The thing about horror films for me is that once the blood, gore and scares start coming, I’m not freaked out anymore… As soon as the cheap frights come in my fight or flight mode turns on and I’m no longer freaked out.
My imagination can scare me alot more than any CGI monster or shocking chopping people up scene can.
Seemingly innocent sounds, eerie locations a build up of tension - all has me scared to shit, then, when the scare comes, I’m just like meh, at least I know what it is and where it is, would I fight or run? - for me survival mode does not = freaked out mode.
I find myself far more disturbed when the tension drops, and things go back to normal. The unkown threat still there but not as strong, only to come back again, but never revealing itself. Always leaving it to the imagination.
[quote]roybot wrote:
I didn’t view it as trying to change or reinvigorate the genre: the entire movie is about tearing it down and starting again.[/quote]
Is that not the same thing though?
[/quote]
Not really, no.
Whedon’s intention was not to terrify us with a new breed of horror (which I’m sure he is capable of doing), but to put horror movie tropes under the microscope. There’s no way of doing that without making those cliches an integral part of the story. There is no place for imagination in a movie that exists to expose the inner workings of generic horror. The whole point is to show you everything- it’s comparable to learning how a magician performs an illusion.
Once you know how it’s done, the illusion is gone. Likewise, the next time any of the stereotypes are seriously presented in a horror, the power will be gone. That’s why Cabin has ruined the Evil Dead remake before it has even started filming, and why it has jinxed many long-held horror devices.
If movie makers don’t avoid those devices altogether now, audiences will always refer back to this movie. It even makes you look on movies like the original Evil Dead(s) with a fresh pair of eyes.
Even though the comparisons with Scream are warranted, Cabin can’t be lampooned like Scream was. It walks such a fine line between parody and sincerity that it’s effectively ‘spoof proof’ - all of the self- parody is done because it becomes what it ridicules. It has to.
You’ll know what I mean when you see it, just don’t expect a Scary Movie-type franchise to emerge from this. It has in-built defenses against hack writers looking to cash in.
[quote]roybot wrote:
Even though the comparisons with Scream are warranted, Cabin can’t be lampooned like Scream was. It walks such a fine line between parody and sincerity that it’s effectively ‘spoof proof’ - all of the self- parody is done because it becones what it ridicules. It has to.
You’ll know what I mean when you see it, just don’t expect a Scary Movie-type franchise to emerge from this. [/quote]
Scary movie.
Exactly what I thought at some parts, just more dark and subtle.