Note: What follows is free of any and all potential spoilers.
Eight questions. Eight questions are all I had for Drew Goddard when I sat down with him. I was there to discuss The Cabin in the Woods, his directorial debut he cowrote with frequent collaborator Joss Whedon. I hadn’t seen the film when we sat down, which is unfortunate. Because now that I have there are about 1,000 more questions that I’m dying to ask. And to reveal one of them to you now would unravel a lot of the charm that comes with seeing this film for the first time.
I’m being slightly cheeky with my editorial title here, of course you’re going to read about The Cabin in the Woods. You’re reading this, aren’t you? I don’t envy the position Lionsgate finds itself in. They have a motion picture to sell, but they also have to be careful about selling too much. The latest trailer gives away a lot – almost too much. And as the film’s April 13th release draws nearer, I’m concerned much of what makes this film special will be out there in the world before you ever get to sit down with the film in a theater.
So if you’ll allow me, I’d like to advise you to steer clear of anything and everything having to do with The Cabin in the Woods. Buy a ticket, see the movie, and then come back to CHUD so we can all talk about it. The Cabin in the Woods isn’t a game changer. For all intents and purposes, it is the game – or at least what the game should be when filmmakers are doing it right. It’s a horror film for lovers of horror. It’s unlike any horror film I’ve seen and yet it manages to be every horror film I’ve ever seen. That’s an admittedly bordering-on-hyperbolic statement that won’t make much sense right now, but when you see the film and it goes about pulling back it’s blood-soaked veil, it’s going to make perfect sense. And to me it rings true.
I’m not embargoed on this film. But after today I’m embargoing myself (save for the above-mentioned spoiler-free interview), probably until after the film’s been in theaters for a few days. I’m about to read Renn’s review right now – because I’m curious what someone else who saw the film thought, and because I want to live with the film a little while longer today. I don’t want to write a review yet, not if I can’t talk about all the things that make it great. So for the time being I’m holding back. And I implore you to do the same, steer clear of anything that will spoil this film for you. If it’s stars you care about, it’s getting five from me. Same as Renn gave it.
The best part about this gig isn’t the free movies or getting to meet interesting filmmakers like Goddard, it’s engaging in discourse on film with other like-minded individuals such as yourself. It’s also about, hopefully, trying my best to convince you of films I feel are worth your hard-earned dollar. To that effect, I’m taking my own advice and buying a ticket to The Cabin in the Woods when it’s released this April, Friday the 13th. If you’re a horror fan or you just dig good films in general, I hope to see you there too.