![]() ![]() What the heck was the director's cameo for? And did Paul and Marcy really have to get it on while all their friends are dying? It's really weird stuff that just feels out of place in all the confusion. The little boy at the market store served no purpose other than some flying kicks and a bite on the hand. Granted the order in which folks die, and the choices as to which characters survive, add nice comedic surprises, but the way events play out seem amateur and convenient. But he lacks writing chops and makes all his characters sound like idiots. ![]() It's pretty clear Roth knows his horror and really loves the genre. But the rest of the movie is unimpressive. It's these areas of the movie that work well and can be fairly creative - even funny. The idea is also a nice setup for some decent scenes of gore and for making viewers' skin crawl, from a crazed hermit spitting blood inside a truck to Marcy strangely wanting to shave her legs. In 'Cabin Fever', the notion barely raises tension, but Roth uses it as a departure from the 70s/80s horror style he wishes to evoke. That's really where this sort of plot can be suspenseful and even exciting. What I meant to write was 'The Andromeda Strain' or 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'. Such concepts work better as a sci-fi thriller like 'Dreamcatcher' or 'Outbreak.' Oh, geez, did I just mention those. In fact, it sounds kind of lame for a horror movie. Within a couple of days, a horrific, flesh-eating virus spreads amongst the group and divides them into germaphobes, pitting buddy against buddy and boyfriend against girlfriend. One that is silent, invisible, and impossible to kill: contamination and disease. Lurking in the dark, creepy woods is not some demonic supernatural force from 'The Evil Dead,' a machete or chainsaw-wielding maniac of the 'Friday the 13th' and 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' series, or some wild, perverse yokels on the dangerous hunt as in 'Deliverance.' Here, the kids encounter a deadlier foe. Once at the cabin, where the happy bunch go to get away from the stresses of higher education, the movie quickly strays from the predictable formula. For added measure (or maybe to just drive the point home), writer/director Eli Roth includes a few local bumpkins, a karate "Pancakes!" kid with a really rocking mullet, and a dimwitted deputy who just wants to party and acts as comic relief. Jeff (Joey Kern) and Marcy (Cerina Vincent) are the archetypal college couple: attractive, self-centered and most importantly, sexually active with a freaky side. Bert (James DeBello) is the crude jokester lacking social manners, who looks like a jock, though it's never clear he plays any sports. Paul (Rider Strong) is the reserved, modest guy in love with his childhood friend, Karen (Jordan Ladd), who plays the spunky good girl. 'Cabin Fever' starts off in typical fashion, with our introduction to a really annoying group of young college friends. The movie is really meant to be enjoyed as a humorously gory and repulsive celebration of the genre and not as pushing any boundaries. Actually, its poor direction, acting, and overt use of horror conventions, make it only slightly above average. ![]() The low-budget flick's use of a common social fear situated in a formulaic plot is somewhat smart and inventive, which is not to suggest that the movie is all that original or greatly entertaining either. After years of endless rehashes, each dreadfully worse than the last, we can look back at Roth's directorial debut with at least the tiniest bit of appreciation. In retrospect, Eli Roth's 'Cabin Fever' isn't all that bad, even displaying a bit of clever wit as it sloppily dissects and almost mocks the very genre to which it aspires to pay homage. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |