Cabin in the Woods

The Horror Behind the Curtain             
by Zac Sanford

College coeds at a secluded cabin in the woods have long been a staple of the horror genre. It's a tired and stale cliche that has left audiences bored and hungry for something new and inventive. With the release of Cabin in the Woods, director Joss Whedon and co-writer Drew Goddard tackle the genre with a crowd-pleasing twist on that tired and dreary formula.

To go too deeply into the twist, one would have to lay out heavy spoiler warnings, and this is a film best viewed with the least amount of prior knowledge. As with the "kids in the woods" tropes, it begins with a mix of cliches and stereotypes. We've got the alpha male who will try to stand tall when the stuff finally hits the fan (Chris Hemsworth), the dim-witted blonde with a nice rack to drive up the ticket sales of the adolescent set (Anna Hutchison), the heartbroken but reserved female (Kristen Connolly), the stoner with his different views on the world (Fran Kranz), and the token black character (Jesse Williams). Yes, these are total Hollywood cliches, or at least that's what one is led to believe.

Joss has been known in the past to take something familiar and turn it on its head. While all those stock characters may give you the idea of perception as reality, the writer/director wants you to look deeper beneath the layers that are on the surface. It isn't until something is conjured up to attack our group that true identities come to the forefront. But what will actually attack our heroes?

In the cabin in the woods movies it could be a bevy of concepts or ideas. Typically some backwoods inbred psycho is on the loose or conjured up from the dead. Once our characters get to their destination, the psycho in the woods does come at them, but this isn't like any other horror film. As the campers prepare for an evening filled with cup after cup of alcohol or their preferred drug of choice, something beckons them down into the dimly lit and eerie basement. Every character is entranced and drawn to a specific item. Will it be the orb? The book about a past event in this very cabin? A piece of jewelry with special powers? Or could it actually be a mix of all these things.

Cabin in the Woods is more akin to to Scream than Hostel. The laughs come far more often than the scares or the gore, which is mainly saved until the climatic and overdone third act. Joss and Drew know the genre and how they can play around in it, manipulating and poking fun at horror movies. As a personal fan of horror films, I sometimes want to yell at the screen for the idiotic choice of the main character, but with this flick, it is proof that the writer and director knows how to manipulate and invoke a reaction.

Even if horror movies aren't typically your thing, I would implore you to check this movie out. Usually when a film sits on a shelf for multiple years it is because the final product isn't of the highest caliber, but this film was only lost in the shuffle due to the demise of MGM. Cabin in the Woods is a treat for any film fan.

Silent House

A Single Shot of Terror                  

by Zac Sanford

The girl in peril story is told from a different point-of-view in Silent House.  

What's familiar is the twisted tale of terror about a girl who is alone, stuck and secluded, as some evil force tries to terrorize her. It isn't the story that is the gem within Silent House, but the way co-directors Chris Kentis and Laura Lau (the same team behind the indie thriller Open Water) tell it as a single take. While Hitchcock was limited to the length of film within a magazine, technology now allows the filmmakers to extend shots and find even more clever ways to hide those sneaky little edits.

From the beginning, Kentis and Lau show off their flare in a crane shot of Sarah (Elizabeth Olsen) on the dock at a lake. From there the camera pans down and follows her to meet her father, John (Adam Trese), who has taken her to the old family house to spend the weekend cleaning it up and repairing it with her uncle, Peter (Eric Sheffer Stevens), so they can sell it. The home is no longer useful, and instead of dealing with the non-stop problem of pests and squatters, why not put it up on the market.

After a brief encounter with her former friend, Sophie (Julia Taylor Ross), whom she doesn't even remember, Sarah is left with just her father as Peter drives off into town. Since the house is old, floors creak and other noises come from all different directions. The house is only lit by the lanterns and flashlights, as the power has long been shut off and the windows have been boarded up to keep out the undesirables.

As with all horror films, something happens and suddenly Sarah is separated from her father. The camera work is perfected by allowing you to travel along with her as she creeps around the house, trying to find him. But the tension builds and she senses she is no longer alone. She peaks around a corner, and as the camera goes with her, we are limited only to her viewpoint.

And since the family didn't want anyone getting in, claustrophobia builds as Sarah tries to find her way out of the house and to safety. Not since The Descent have I felt so much tension. The limited amount of light and tight spaces make the big screen feel so small.

Elizabeth Olsen is a star in the making. After her stint in the highly-praised Martha Marcy May Marlene in 2011, Silent House is another showcase for the young actress, who should easily step out of the shadow of her sisters. She must carefully tread through the house, first in a journey to find her father, then just as quickly she must shift gears and convey pure tension and terror without the use of dialogue. She must stay as quiet as possible to avoid detection by her pursuer, as her chest heaves with each labored, silent breath.

While the script is light on story, it is the performance and camera work that will keep the viewer on the edge of their seat. Most of the story is lightly layered throughout the film and only hinted at, leaving the viewer to make their own assumptions. The film loses some of its luster in the final five minutes as the filmmakers try to tie together all the subtle clues previously laid out to the viewers. The problem is, the twist that it tries to take has been seen before, and because of the single-shot conceit, some viewers may leave scratching their heads at what they just saw.






3.5 out of 5 stars

The Innkeepers

The Final Guest Checks Out
by Zac Sanford

It is the end of an era at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, a small town hotel that has been in business for over 100 years. And over those years the hotel has had its share of guests, including one that may still be roaming the halls, not as a live-in resident or staff member, but as an entity that refuses to leave after the suicide she committed many years ago.   

The fact that the hotel may be haunted has always intrigued Luke (Pat Healy), and to jump on the paranormal bandwagon that has taken over reality TV, he’s built a website where he recounts the legend of jilted bride-to-be, Madeline O’Malley. Since this is the last weekend the hotel is to be open, he’s enlisted co-worker Claire (Sara Paxton) to record any occurrences that may arise during the final three days. With the hotel all but empty, they both take turns working the front desk and recording while the other sleeps in one of the empty rooms. There isn’t time drive to and from work when there’s only a little time to find and exploit the spiritual medium.

Pat Healy and Sara Paxton

It isn’t until Leanne Rease-Jones (Kelly McGillis), a former actress-turned-spiritualist, checks in for a psychic convention nearby, that things start to stir in the night. The sweet-natured Claire is enamored by her as the most famous person she’s ever met, but Leanne is bitter and feels something isn’t right in this historic building. After her convention she has a heart-to-heart with Claire, warning her that sometimes things are best left alone. But Claire doesn’t head her warning and continues to try to make a connection.

The film doesn’t fall into the typical pratfall of jump scares every ten to fifteen minutes to keep the audience intrigued. Director/writer/editor Ti West (The House of the Devil) takes his time building up to his explosive third act. You actually get a chance to know spunky Claire and bitter Luke. They have such a wonderful rapport, partially in Luke’s infatuation for Claire that has a zero percent chance to be returned. They are two close friends that are able to spend the mundane hours of the flailing business just talking and still find a way to have a good time.   

And when the stuff starts to hit the fan, you’ll care. You want to see them succeed and survive to the final frame of the film when the credits roll. Sure they don’t know what the future will hold for them as they hit the unemployment line, but they may just be able to get through life… if they can only survive.

West has become a master at the slow-burn horror film, which will please some genre fans while infuriating others. His style is one that harkens back to the pre-torture porn era of the genre, letting the sensation of terror build, and finally grabbing you when he feels it is time to pull the plug. Those who are accustomed to the films where a kill must happen every ten to fifteen minutes may be bored by the first two-thirds, but hopefully will be around for the final climactic act. 

But West isn’t alone. Once again he re-teams with DP Eliot Rockett, who perfectly keeps his camera aimed not on what the characters see, but instead on the characters themselves. Sound Designer Graham Reznick balances the perfect mix of loud scares with pure silence to build tension, while Jeff Grace’s score pays homage to Bernard Herman’s days with Hitchcock.

The Innkeepers is currently available on VOD through most platforms and will have a limited theatrical release on February 03, 2012.