![]() ![]() There was also very few shocks, and once I adjusted to the carnage, consequently, it wasn't that scary. However he shows almost no creativity in Cabin Fever and for me he never demonstrated the extent of his talent. All this adds up to the construction of a cheesy 80's horror movie, which was exactly what Roth was trying to mimic. Especially considering the tiny budget it was made on. ![]() Firstly, the acting is much better than I expected it would be, and the gore is disgusting and boasts some pretty impressive bloody corpse special effects. But that's just damning it with very faint praise. Rating: R (Language|Brief Drug Use|Sexuality|Strong Violence and Gore)ĭefinitely Eli Roth's most inspired, and most substantial film. The friends struggle to stop the contagious, flesh-eating disease while on the run from a group of ornery backwoods locals out for revenge. When the man stumbles into a reservoir, he infects the water supply, and soon one of Bert's friends becomes infected. Panicking, he abandons the scene and leaves the man for dead. Halfway through this wasted opportunity of a movie, I was already rooting for the virus.Bert (James DeBello), a college student vacationing with friends in the mountains, mistakenly shoots a local man (Arie Verveen) with a skin infection while hunting in the woods. They're bland and they're boring, and we don't give a monkey's what happens to them. Their mobile phones work perfectly, except when they need to use them.Įven the characters themselves are straight out of central casting, the same cardboard cut-outs we've seen a million times before - the babe (Vincent), the boorish jock (James DeBello), the "nice" girl (Ladd). Their truck inexplicably breaks down (but works again when the plot demands). ![]() As a result, characters head off into the night on their own in search of help, armed with nothing more threatening than a torch. Roth seems happy to play it safe and trot out a series of horror genre staples, as if he's trawled the B-movie archives for inspiration. The film is already floundering when Giuseppe Andrews appears as a spaced-out sheriff - but Andrews' attempt to lighten the mood with his "comic" turn only succeeds in killing it stone dead. But too many scenes fall flat, or simply don't work. There's also a stomach-churning scene involving the unfortunate Karen (Jordan Ladd) and a rabid dog. It does have its moments, especially when the virus kicks in, and you might want to look away when Marcy (Cerina Vincent) starts shaving her legs in the bath. Where did the virus come from in the first place? Why does no one think to call in the authorities once it starts to spread beyond the woods? And that hillbilly kid with a penchant for biting people's hands? What the hell is that all that about? Instead, we get a mish-mash that doesn't know if it's supposed to be played for laughs or shocks, and in the end it turns out to be a messy hybrid of both, with too many questions left unanswered. So far, not so bad, but having set things up nicely, writer/director Eli Roth then loses the plot. Pretty routine stuff, then? Yes, but at least Cabin Fever does offer one clever twist on the "if you go down to the woods" genre - our college kids are being knocked off not by the dentally-challenged rednecks but by something even more terrifying, a nasty flesh-eating virus that has been brought into the camp by an infected stranger. Cue lots of screaming, lots of blood and guts, and lots of dead people. ![]() This being schlock horror, we know exactly what happens - they do meet some locals but, surprise, surprise, they're a bunch of deranged hillbillies with big guns and bad teeth. You know what happens next - they meet and befriend some well-adjusted locals, sing songs around the campfire and generally have a jolly nice time before heading back home. Five college friends head for the woods for a spot of R&R. ![]()
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